R-rated movies from major studios. R-rated comic book movies from major studios. R-rated comic book movies that don't even mention the name of the umbrella franchise in the title. These were not the norm when Hugh Jackman and writer/director James Mangold somehow talked 20th Century Fox into what became Logan. Yet ironically, as the mainline X-Men franchise stumbled, it was the R-rated entries that were delivering...Also delivering? The revival of Evil Dead on the big screen with Evil Dead Rise. It took ten years and a four season TV show in-between to bring the franchise back to cinemas, even if at one point the plan was to go straight to streaming. And it was an upcoming director who was given the responsibility...Stories of both are told in this episode. Please don't forget to subscribe and leave a glowing review. You're lovely. Ta.---Find Simon on Twitter and Bluesky at @simonbrew, and the podcast can be found at @filmstories Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's been over a decade since the debate first ignited: is Tom Cruise the right person to play the character of Jack Reacher? The answer came originally in the form of a 2012 movie, although the first big screen outing for Lee Child's famous character had been in development for well over a decade by that point. In the end, Werner Herzog was recruited too. But it was the choice of director that would have a lasting impact on Tom Cruise's career.The film Once though had barely any expectations on it, even for a cinema release. A few screens in Dublin, maybe? And when Cillian Murphy left the film, it looked like the tiny budget would fall away anyway. What happened next? Well it was that rarest of movie fairytales...---Find Simon on Twitter and Bluesky at @simonbrew, and the podcast can be found at @filmstories Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the latest episode of the Film Stories podcast, a war movie, a boxing movie, and a few problems in the making of both.1963's The Great Escape was a film that director John Sturges couldn't initially get off the ground, and he needed his success with The Magnificent Seven to make it happen. When it did? It wasn't the easiest of productions, with a lot of chopped down trees, and a star who wasn't happy with his part in the film.Sylvester Stallone wasn't initially chomping at the bit to make Rocky III meanwhile, but when he opted to make the movie, his script would reflect the difficulties he was facing himself at the time. Then there was the small matter of finding the actor to play his opponent: Clubber Lang...---Find Simon on Twitter and Bluesky at @simonbrew, and the podcast can be found at @filmstories Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The podcast is fully back up and running again, and this time, we turn our attention to the return of Hannibal Lecter. 2001's Hannibal was the long-awaited return of Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter to the big screen, following 1991's The Silence Of The Lambs. But the original director didn't return. The original screenwriter didn't return. One of the two Oscar-winning stars didn't return. And a chance meeting in Malta - as Ridley Scott was shooting Gladiator - was what helped push things forward.The gestation of I, Daniel Blake was a little more straightforward, as writer Paul Laverty and director Ken Loach went about their familiar process: this time, though, they'd be making a film with fairly quick ramifications. What's more, casting a lead actor who was just on the verge of jacking it all in...---Find Simon on Twitter and Bluesky at @simonbrew, and the podcast can be found at @filmstories Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a longer than originally planned gap (due to a dodgy voice!), the Film Stories podcast returns from its summer snooze. And what better way to start than with not one T2, but a pair of them.First up? Terminator 2: Judgment Day, a film that cost its makers $15m just for the rights to. That, and enormous cheques to writer/director James Cameron, and leading man Arnold Schwarzenegger. All well and good: but they didn't actually have a lot of time to make the actual film.The passing of time was one thing T2 Trainspotting had fewer worries about, arriving over 20 years following the original film. One of the key hold ups? A long-running falling out between director Danny Boyle and leading man Ewan McGregor...---Find Simon on Twitter at @simonbrew, and the podcast can be found at @filmstories Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.