Tag Archives: TV Series

Streaming TV

Love, Simon Series Coming to New Disney+ Streaming

A TV series based on last year’s breakout romcom movie hit Love, Simon has been given a straight-to-series order on Disney’s new streaming service called Disney+.

While the movie Love, Simon came direct from author Becky Albertali’s best selling Simon Vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda book, this new series will take place from the third book in Albertali’s ‘simonverse’ trilogy titled Leah on the Offbeat which follows Simon’s best friend Leah and takes place only a short while after the end of Simon’s story.

In the book, while Bram is trying to navigate the perfect promposal to Simon, Leah goes off on a road trip with newly single Abby to scout out perspective collages. The book that sits between Simon and Leah is titled “The Upside of Unrequited” and takes a huge sidestep from Simon and his friends and focuses on Abby’s cousin Molly Peskin-Suso.

While the series will continue the Love, Simon story line, principal cast including Katherine Langford (Leah) and Nick Robinson (Simon) are not attached to the series, though Love, Simon screenwriters Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker will return to serve as showrunners on the Disney+ series. It should also be noted that director Greg Berlanti will not be involved due to his deal with Warner Bros Television.

The right’s to Albertali’s Simonverse characters are now in the hands of Disney after their acquirement of 20th Century Fox.

Update: April 13th 2019

Simon Vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda author Becky Albertali took to Instagram to not only share the news of the Love, Simon series but to also clarify some major misinformation that is being attached to the series. According to Albertali, the Love, Simon series is not a remake of the movie nor is it going to follow the book sequel Leah on the Offbeat. The series will in fact be a spin-off and will be set within the world of Simon. No word on casting though of yet.

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First Look Review: The Exorcist

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Alan Ruck and Geena Davis in THE EXORCIST. (c)2016 Fox Broadcasting/Jean Whiteside

A dark an eerie take on the timeless cult horror flick pits Geena Davis against a demonic force that has set its eyes on her family.

Joining the ranks of the ‘reboot’ fad, The Exorcist has a more tender ground to tread on than others within the field thanks to its cult fandom background.  Considered to be one of the scariest films of all time, the 1973 movie of the same name produced an iconic film filled with memorable quotes and scenes (a 360 degree head turn anyone?) that have been done and redone so many times that this new incarnation has to be very careful of not to try and out-do or recreate what has been done and done well.

Thankfully, in this new outing for The Exorcist, it leaves little opportunity open for fans and viewers to mock or gripe.

Taking the lead (and bringing in some worthy star power) Geena Davis plays Angela Rance, a religious upper class working mother who is concerned that the noises and strange occurrences happening in her home might be more than just your everyday easy to explain happenings.  Her husband Henry (Alan Ricks) is a former version of himself due to a workplace accident, her eldest daughter Kat (Brianne Howey) is dark and depressed after a tragic accident that killed her best friend while youngest daughter Casey (Hannah Kasulka) is a care-free and easy going young woman with the world at her feet.

Concerned that troubled Kat may be ‘under the influence of a demon’, Angela asks local priest Father Tomas (Alfonso Herrera) to do a cleansing of her house though Tomas’ spiritual demons find him playing cat and mouse between a concerned mother worried her daughter is possessed and another priest, Father Marcus (Ben Daniels) who has very close ties to the world of exorcisms.

What ensues is a stylish and slick tale about religion in the modern day versus the barriers provided by old-school religion.

At an hour long, the first episode doesn’t feel rushed or have too much crammed into it though there lies a problem in that you begin to question how Angela is so convinced there is a demon in her house when we are not actually privy to any demonic activity (the only real signs is through her telling Father Tomas about cupboards and chairs in the kitchen moving about) and the scene where Father Tomas and Father Marcus meet – via demonic children filled dreams is semi-sketchy to say the least but one could say it’s divine intervention from a higher power to bring the two together.

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We do catch a glimpse of this demonic force, though it’s not until the end of the episode and provides one of the best surprise plot twists presented in a pilot in some time and it’s not the series only card up their sleeve.  The big reveal comes towards the end of episode five that will have those who know the movie literally gagging with excitement about what’s to come.

The Exorcist  begins Sunday December 4, 8.30pm on Showcase.

Pilot score: 4.5/5