Guillermo del Toro, writer/director of Hellboy 2 and the upcoming The Hobbit, is bringing his expertise in creating extraordinary creatures and stories on screen to the bookstore with a new vampire trilogy book series.

They have always been here. Vampires.
In secret and in darkness.
Waiting. Now their time has come.
In one week, Manhattan will be gone.
In one month,the country.
In two months – the world.

So begins the introduction to The Strain, the first book in the trilogy.  The Strain has been co-written by del Toro with award-winning crime author Chuck Hogan.  It centers on a plague that turns humans into terrifying bloodsuckers and will follow a group of people as they struggle to save their family, friends, city – and the world.

A cool viral trailer has been released to promote the first book, which you can watch below:

Read the rest of this entry »

Karen Gillan wins the role as the 11th Doctor's companion

The BBC today revealed that the companion for the forthcoming series of Doctor Who will be played by a virtual unknown by the name of Karen Gillan.

Twenty-one-year-old Gillan will star alongside new Time Lord, Matt Smith, when the series returns to BBC One in spring 2010.

This won’t be the first time Gillan has appeared in Doctor Who. She previously appeared as a Roman Soothsayer alongside David Tennant in the 2008 Doctor Who story ‘The Fires of Pompeii’.

With filming due to begin this summer, Gillan beat off dozens of hopefuls to land one of television’s most coveted roles.  She won’t be an unknown for long.

Gillan said: “I am absolutely over the moon at being chosen to play the Doctor’s new companion. The show is such a massive phenomenon that I can’t quite believe I am going to be a part of it.

“Matt Smith is an incredible actor and it is going to be so much fun to act alongside him – I just can’t wait to get started!”

Lead writer and Executive Producer, Steven Moffat, added: “We saw some amazing actresses for this part, but when Karen came through the door the game was up. Funny, and clever, and gorgeous, and sexy. Or Scottish, which is the quick way of saying it. A generation of little girls will want to be her. And a generation of little boys will want them to be her too.”

Executive Producer and Head of Drama BBC Wales, Piers Wenger, said: “We knew Karen was perfect for the role the moment we saw her. She brought an energy and excitement to the part that was just fantastic. And when she auditioned alongside Matt we knew we had something special. It is a partnership that is ready to take on the universe!”

The new series of Doctor Who comes to BBC One, Spring 2010.

Source: BBC Press Release

The international trailer for Jonathan Mostow’s (U571 / Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines) new sci-fi action thriller Surrogates has been released.  There isn’t a lot different between this and the domestic US version but there are at least a couple of snippets of different footage to enjoy.

Surrogates, based on the Top Shelf Comix graphic novel by Robert Venditti, tells the story of a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and only interact in the real world using robot versions of themselves known as ‘Surrogates’. It follows FBI agents Greer (Bruce Willis) and Peters (Radha Mitchell) who are forced to interact with the real world in person as they investigate a string of surrogate murders.

This could be one of the top sci-fi movies of the year.

Surrogates hits theaters:
USA & UK – September 25
Australia – October 8

A Vampire, a Werewolf and a Ghost

BBC America has announced the air date for the premiere of the supernatural drama Being Human. Make sure you set some time aside to check it out at 9pm (ET/PT) on July 25, 2009.

Being Human follows the story of a Vampire (Aidan Turner), a Werewolf (Russell Tovey) and a Ghost (Lenora Crichlow) who all share a flat in Bristol and who battle their dark natures – and those of their enemies.  It is part drama, part comedy and part supernatural thriller.

Although the first season of Being Human ran for only six episodes in the UK, the series received instant critical acclaim and by episode five it had been approved for an 8 episode second season.  By the time its sixth episode had aired its viewer numbers were almost as high as Lost.

It has been called one of the best new series to hit television screens in a long time and so US viewers would be wise to check it out in July.

For UK fans the second season of Being Human is scheduled to commence filming in August with a planned UK air date during January 2010.

As of today Paramount’s Star Trek has taken the lead as the highest grossing film of the year.

Star Trek has now grossed $194.8M at the US Box Office giving it the edge over Paramount’s Monsters Vs Aliens ($193.9M).

X-Men Origins: Wolverine is at third place with $166M followed by Night at the Museum 2 ($76.7M) and Terminator Salvation ($71.8M).

Needless to say, Paramount are very happy right about now.

Source: showbizdata via airlock alpha

Take a look at these excellent futuristic drawings from Adam Paquette, a freelance painter from Sydney, Australia.  Paquette’s work came to our attention thanks to a post on io9 and as fans of concept artwork in all its forms, it’s not hard to appreciate the talent at work here.

If you want to see more of Paquette’s stunning work, check out his website here or his blog here.

Universal Pictures have released the sixth TV Spot for Will Ferrell’s Land of the Lost.

Land of the Lost follows Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell) who finds himself sucked into a space-time vortex alongside his research assistant (Anna Friel) and a redneck survivalist (Danny McBride). In this alternate universe, the trio make friends with a primate named Chaka (Jorma Taccone), their only ally in a world full of dinosaurs and other fantastic creatures.

Land of the Lost release dates as follows:
USA – 5 June 2009
Australia – 11 June 2009
UK – 31 July 2009

DreamWorks Pictures have released a fourth TV spot for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The quality isn’t a touch on the these three, but here you go:

The premiere of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen will occur at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 22.  Two days later on June 24 it will hit theaters worldwide.

Universal Pictures have released the fifth TV Spot for Will Ferrell’s Land of the Lost.

Land of the Lost follows Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell) who finds himself sucked into a space-time vortex alongside his research assistant (Anna Friel) and a redneck survivalist (Danny McBride). In this alternate universe, the trio make friends with a primate named Chaka (Jorma Taccone), their only ally in a world full of dinosaurs and other fantastic creatures.

Land of the Lost release dates as follows:
USA – 5 June 2009
Australia – 11 June 2009
UK – 31 July 2009

Stargate Atlantis star Joe Flanigan to appear in 'Warehouse 13'

Warehouse 13 will be getting a boost from several guest stars with serious sci-fi credibility, including alums from Battlestar Galactica and Stargate Atlantis. Here are some of the familiar faces you can look forward to seeing during the show’s first season:

Joe Flanigan (John Sheppard from Stargate Atlantis) will play a charming, wealthy potential suspect in one of Pete and Myka’s investigations.

Tricia Helfer (Number Six from Battlestar Galactica) will play an FBI agent who finds herself at odds with Pete and Myka over control of an investigation.

Michael Hogan (Saul Tigh from Battlestar Galactica) will play Myka’s father.

Joe Morton (Henry Deacon from Eureka) will play a prisoner who also happens to be a religious extremist.

Other guest stars will include Mark Sheppard (Romo Lampkin from Battlestar Galactica), Erica Cerra (Jo Lupo from Eureka) and Niall Matter (Zane Donovan from Eureka).

Warehouse 13 premieres July 7.