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Fans of epic high fantasy, please perk up your pointy elven ears, because the darkness is already part of us! The two biggest fantasy highlights of the year gift us with brandnew trailers to sweeten our day and the signs heavily point to war ...

For THE RINGS OF POWER Amazon Studios dropped not just a first teaser trailer but also a "Look Inside" featurette. After the cat-and-mouse game of last season and the big overarching question "Who is Sauron?", the mighty necromancer now comes out into the ligh... ehrm... the dark and keeps the heroes around Galadriel on their toes. Celebrimbor forged the title-giving rings with the help of Halbrand who at the end of last season was revealed to be Sauron himself, but was that really a good idea? We are all incredibly excited to see how this story is going to evolve. Visually the teaser is again the most bombastic eye candy and the landscapes teleport us back to middle earth as we want to see it. And... let's be real: Making the orcs real actors in amazing costumes instead of CGI-inserts was the best decision this show made!
Here's the first trailer for THE RINGS OF POWER season 2:
https://youtu.be/TCwmXY_f-e0
And the Behind the Scenes featurette:
https://youtu.be/pL02_uTRBKw
The new season will be broadcast on Prime Video starting on August 29th.

HBO also gives us a spectacular new trailer for the second season of the acclaimed »Game of Thrones« prequel HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, which teases exactly what we expect from this series: conspiracies, political thrillers, epic battles, swear words, peroxide white hair and of course DRAGONS, DRAGONS and even more DRAGONS - without revealing too much about the exciting story. Where the first season seemed to be just a light teaser, now the full bombshell hits and we are expecting one of the biggest television events in recent years.
After watching this trailer, you're definitely going to look forward to it:
https://youtu.be/YN2H_sKcmGw
And we won't have to wait too long, because season 2 of HOUSE OF THE DRAGON is going to start in a month, on June 16th on Max.

May, as always, is all about Star Wars for us. We're not just celebrating George Lucas's birthday but also our "May the 4th" deals - and, how else could it be, our postcard hails from a galaxy far, far away as well 🌌.

It was made by Andrea, who photographed Yoda taking a short break before Luke's training continues. The figures are both from Hasbro's Black Series. Many thanks to Andrea for the great card and this fun picture 😄!

If you would also like to have this postcard, just grab something from our shop because we're putting a free copy into every package we send out this month. So just browse through our store or just snatch one of the amazing Star Wars collectibles we currently have on sale! And if you're looking for more creative pictures from the Star Wars universe, check out Andrea's account!

"You simply have to put one foot in front of the other and keep going. Put blinders on and plow right ahead." - George Lucas

These words could be used to describe Lucas's career because he never let any adversity stop him from realizing his projects and created some of the biggest franchises on earth, which left their mark on popculture unlike any other.

It's not just his work we want to celebrate though, but also Lucas himself, because the author of Indiana Jones and creator of the fantastic Star Wars universe is turning 80 years old today 🥳! Happy Birthday, George - may the force be with you 💛!

Paramount Pictures has released another trailer for the prequel to the successful film series »A Quiet Place«. The new scenes from »A Quiet Place: Day One« show the events that forced mankind to remain silent:
https://youtu.be/gjx-iHGXk9Q

If you're not attentive enough in this apocalypse, you'll bear the deadly consequences. The young New Yorker Sam (Lupita Nyong'o) experiences this mercilessly when the otherwise lively city suddenly makes no noise anymore. Together with her cat and Eric (Joseph Quinn), she must escape the metropolis as silently as possible to avoid becoming a victim of the invasion.

We are incredibly excited to see how the story begins in cinemas at the end of June.

Today, a film that's very special to us is turning 30 - THE CROW! On May 10th, 1994 »The Crow« had it's premiere in Santa Monica, California before it was released to cinemas all over the world over the course of the year.

Of course, the 80s are probably the most formative decade for our pop culture. Thinking about the 90s though, every lover of action, fantasy and mystery movies will immediately think of »The Crow« - and this film for sure won't be missing from any well sorted DVD or Blu-ray collection. The tragic death of lead actor Brandon Lee during the filming has - unfortunately - lended the movie an incredibly emotional, deeply sad and dramatic tone. Keeping that in mind while watching, you probably will have non-stop goosebumps.

But in general, we think that not just the theme, but the setting, the look and of course the soundtrack are more typical 90s than almost any other film. It's no surprise that there have been so many licensed collectibles for »The Crow« by various manufacturers over the past 25 years. What do you think - would that be worth a S.P.A.C.E Special, similar to the one we did for »Jaws«?

»The Crow« is definitely always a great choice when you're looking for something to watch on Devil's Night or any other dark, rainy evening. And always remember: It can't rain all the time!

At first we thought it was a (very) belated April Fools' joke, but it seems to be true: A new »Lord of the Rings« film is on the way!

We've already been looking forward to the animated prequel »The War of the Rohirrim«, which is going to hit theaters in December. Now there is even more to be delighted about, because a few hours ago, it was officially announced that Andy Serkis - Gollum himself - is working on a movie titled »The Hunt for Gollum«. He is going to direct it and of course play the titular character, while Peter Jackson will take part as a producer next to Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. Serkis himself made it official with this Gollum selfie on Instagram.

We are super excited for any further details on the project, which we can look forward to over the next (many) months, because the film is going to be released in 2026. By the way, a second film from the franchise is set to follow as well, but there is no further information about it yet. We are definitely keeping our bloody fingers crossed for this one!

You are looking for the perfect prime time appetizer for today's Father's Day? We got somethin' for ya:
💫 NEUES AUS DEM FIGUREN UNIVERSUM 💫 episode 15 just went online! And because our guys have a day off today - as it's supposed to be on Father's Day - it's Eva and Joanna this time who will show you some great collectible highlights from »Lord of the Rings«, »Hellboy«, »Star Wars«, »Turtles«, »Ghostbusters« and a couple of other franchises.

So, dear daddies and non-daddies: put your feet up high, grab a beer and there you got with NADFU episode 15 - now on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/ayMZmD4nI14

»Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes« is starting to hit cinemas today!

We are often a little tired of the constant flood of the return of the same old thing in the form of countless remakes. And some remakes seem more than unnecessary. But there are also films that, despite all their brilliance and importance, are getting a bit old. »Planet of the Apes« from 1968 and its sequels are movies that we love, but we also think that modernization would do them good.

»Rise of the Planet of the Apes« from 2011 and its two sequels did a great job and used CGI technology to the advantage of the story. The plot of how the earth became a Planet of the Apes was also extremely clever. And Andy Serkis as Caesar of course did the rest.

The announcement of a fourth film with »Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes« surprised us, but also made us curious. And the trailers increased our anticipation immensely. We now can finally convince ourselves - on the big screen 🤩!

My body is broken. You have to let me go. I go to my fathers in whos mighty company I shall not now feel ashamed.

Long live Théoden, King of Rohan ⚔️!
🖤 In loving memory of Bernard Hill (1944-2024)

"If we're ever going to win against monsters, we need to start acting human!"
That sound really empathetic, doesn't it?! But looking at the gore and violence that happens in the latest trailer on »The Boys« season 4, we would rather assume that The Boys' "acting human" looks kinda different that what we're used to 😂🙈:
https://youtu.be/EzFXDvC-EwM

Anyway, Butcher and his crew surely know what it takes to fight the Supes and get us the same level of bloody, sarcastic and totally exaggerated superhero entertainment fun in the upcoming season of the fantastic Prime Video show which will hit Amazon on June 13th! We're totally excited 🤟!!!

So, dear Star Wars fans, did you have a great May the 4th? There was a lot to experience - of course on Disney+ (»Tales of the Empire«) and on YouTube, with the new trailer on »The Acolyte«:
https://youtu.be/6tzur6JrUEA

Totally cool that it'll take less than a month until the new series will air on Disney+ 🥳! We are really looking forward to that!

At least as exciting were the collectibles news from last weekend - especially the ones that got revealed during the SIDESHOW livestreams. A really stunning Captain Rex as Premium Format Figure, the shortly before teasered Premium Format Mace Windu and the brand-new Mythos Obi-Wan Kenobi which was announced within the »12 Days of Sideshow« were the very own reveals. These were accompanied by a bunch of Hot Toys 1/6 novelties, like f.e. the super cool Dark Empire Luke (based on the comic books), the Shadow Trooper with Death Star Environment, the Imperial Commando and a re-issue of Darth Maul incl. Sith Speeder. We expect to be able to list most of these announcements in our shop very soon 😉.

The biggest surprise though came from the Asian manufacturer BLITZWAY! Although this announcement still seems to be top secret and we may only guess ... Blitzway made a big buzz about half a year ago with the introduction of their new »Black Label« statue line with Michael Jackson as #1 of the series. The 2nd release of this high-end line seems to be from the Star Wars universe - and we are guessing for a 1/4 Scale Anakin Skywalker statue from »Revenge of the Sith« which surely will be a blast! Even if Blitzway is not familiar to most Star Wars collectors probably yet, we can assure you that the quality and level of detail is really outstanding, as we think. Therefore we are super excited for the official announcement! Stay tuned and keep an eye on our news 🧐...
Utinniiiii!!!

Mummies have long haunted popular culture. Bram Stoker addressed the topic in his novel »The Jewel of Seven Stars« as early as 1903.

When Howard Carter unearthed Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings in 1923, the topic of Egypt and with it mummies became very fashionable. That led Universal Pictures to make »The Mummy«. The main role was played by Boris Karloff, who had become a star with the role of Frankenstein's monster and here plays the high priest Imhotep, who, after his accidental resurrection, searches for the reincarnation of his lover's soul.

Four mummy B-pictures followed in the 1940s. After Wild-West actor Tom Tyler shuffled around in bandages in the first film, Lon Chaney, Jr. was wrapped three times and played the lethargic mummy Kharis. Evil tongues claim that the Mummy films helped Chaney start drinking. The role was probably not bearable sober.

When Hammer Films recycled the Universal horror films, they dedicated four films to the wrap men. In 1959's »The Mummy«, Christopher Lee played the mummy Kharis. In »Blood from the Mummy's Tomb« the Bram Stoler novel was used as a model.

»The Mummy« celebrated its premiere on May 4, 1999, a good 25 years ago. Starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz and John Hannah. The priest Imhotep, once played by Boris Karloff, was revived here. Now embodied by Arnold Vosloo. However, the film is not a horror film but follows the pattern of an adventure film and is obviously inspired by »Indiana Jones«. The entertaining film got two sequels. We really enjoy it and it's a favorite guilty pleasure.

Because Marvel had shown the way with the Cinematic Universe and Universal had already filmed a series of monster crossovers in the 1940s, they thought it would be a good idea to make »The Mummy« (somehow the title is used in a somewhat inflationary way) the starting signal for their own Dark Universe in 2017. So they sent Superstar Tom Cruise into the race as the leading man. Sofia Boutella played the dapper mummy Ahmanet. The film flopped with critics and audiences, which quickly put an end to the Dark Universe.

But film history teaches us that the next mummy will definitely come.

Dear Star Wars fans, on today's STAR WARS DAY, May 4th, our ⭐ MAY THE 4TH DEALS ⭐ are kickin' off!

Even if you're absolutely not willing to buy any killer sticks, you might not be able to resist one or maybe more of these 10 bargains from a galaxy far, far away, though.

Some of them are available in sufficient numbers - others are just left over in small quantities and almost gone. So quickly head over to our SALE section!

As a highlight and ⭐ MAY THE 4TH PREVIEW DEAL ⭐, we do have the 1:1 THE CHILD / GROGU life-size statue by Sideshow for only 199,99 EUR on sale. Truely a blast of a deal on which you can save over 60% compared to its original price (549,00 EUR)!

All 10 ⭐ MAY THE 4TH DEALS ⭐ are online now and will be valid only while supply lasts or maximum until 31.05.2024!

We wish you all a wonderful STAR WARS DAY - and don't forget: you should trilogy at least once per year!!! Wouldn't this be the perfect weekend 😜?! May the Force be with You!

Possession is currently experiencing a renaissance in cinema: for example, Russel Crowe exorcised on behalf of the Vatican in »The Pope's Exorcist«. A new entry was also added to the classic »The Exorcist« series in the same year. And the year before, we were able to witness in »Talk to Me« how unreasonable TikTok teenagers indulged in possession for entertainment purposes. In short: Being possessed is the new punk!

»Late Night With The Devil« works also on that topic but tries to find its own approach: It tells the story of late-night-host Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) who has already seen the best years of his show. It seems like it is only a question of time until the channel will cancel the show. But Delroy and his colleagues don't want to give up. And there seems to be a big opportunity for the Halloween-Special. Parapsychologist June Ross-Mitchell has recently released a book on the mass-suicide of an dangerous cult. So they invite her and the only suriving victim of the cult: The young Lilly D’Abo. But the girl hides a heinous secret....

»Late Night With The Devil« belongs to the found footage genre. Since its release in USA and Canada it received a lot of positive reviews. We are looking forward to the movie and especially David Dastmalchian whos acting skills were highly acclaimed by the critics.

»Late Night With The Devil« will have its theatrical release on 6 June 2024 in Germany.
https://youtu.be/RFcfs2_K6r8

Today the movie »Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning« finally comes to our theaters with German dub. In Japan it already premiered in October 2023. A look at the trailer lets every Digimon fan's heart beat faster:
https://youtu.be/qc5grmiZmIE

»Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning« ist about the friendship between the humans and the Digimon. How could it be otherwise? About ten years have passed since the last adventures in the Digital World. Daisuke Motomiya is now an adult, and suddenly a mysterious Digi-Egg appears above the Tokyo Tower. After that, Daisuke and the others meet a strange man, who claims to be the first Digi-Destined. We're definitely looking forward to it!

»Captain Future« is the story of Curtis Newton, the son of two genius scientists, who sought refuge on the moon. But their escape didn't save them: Their enemy Victor Corvo was able to track them down and kill them. But fortunately, young Curtis wasn't left on his own. The robot Grag and the android Otho, both creations of his parents, cared for the child and raised him. Curtis became Captain Future, who would go on to fight evil forces in space.

The 1978 anime series from Japan wasn't just a huge success in its home country. Dubbed versions were released all over the world in the 1980s and found fans globally. For many people the show was their first encounter with Japanese animation and it became hugely influential for its acceptance and demand.

That's reason enough for us to honour the »Captain Future« statue by Fariboles Productions! The French manufacturer presents the hero of this space opera in the form of a high-quality 1/6 statue. The bold and determined pose convinced us in the blink of an eye - this stunning collectible, which is limited to 399 pieces worldwide only, has to be our 💥 Product of the Month 💥 May 2024!

70 years ago today, »Creature from the Black Lagoon«, celebrated its film premiere in New York City. We're not only taking this as an opportunity to pay our respects to the Gill Man as the last great Universal Monster, but also for a small class reunion of the legendary creatures.

Of course, the man with a thousand faces, Lon Chaney, the character actor who created his own masks and appeared as »The Hunchback of Notre Dame« in the 1923 silent film is also invited. His best-known role is »The Phantom of the Opera« from 1925. 

When Universal boss Carl Laemmle transferred studio management to his son Carl Laemmle Jr., who was a big fan of horror stories, the horror film really took off and in 1931 Bela Lugosi in »Dracula« and Boris Karloff in »Frankenstein« became stars of the genre. Karloff went on to play »The Mummy« the following year. In 1934, both actors appeared in front of the camera together for the first time in »The Black Cat«. Elsa Lanchester's role as »Bride of Frankenstein« was small, but so iconic that she secured a place among her male colleagues.

You can't talk about the Universal Monsters without talking about makeup artist Jack Pierce, who created the legendary monsters from Frankenstein's creatures to the Wolf Man. In 1933, Claude Rains' »The Invisible Man« was another milestone.

The Universal films were so successful that other studios also tasted blood and produced horror movies. RKO shot »The Most Dangerous Game« and their »King Kong« with Willis O'Brien's groundbreaking stop motion technology; Warner Bros. showed Lionel Atwill in the Technicolor two-color film »Mystery of the Wax Museum«; MGM had »Freaks« and cast Peter Lorre in »Mad Love« and for Paramount Charles Laughton played Dr. Moreau in »Island of Lost Souls« and Fredric March was »Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde«. The latter is sometimes incorrectly attributed to the Universal Monsters.

The first half of the 1930s was a golden age for horror and Universal in particular. But in 1936, the Laemmles lost control of their studio when their film »Show Boat« flopped. The new owners had other plans and took horror off the agenda. Only a constantly sold-out revival of »Dracula« and »Frankenstein« with queues around the block caused the decision-makers to rethink.

Boris Karloff played the monster for the third and last time in »Son of Frankenstein« in 1939 and in 1941, Creighton Tull Chaney made his debut as »The Wolf Man« under the name Lon Chaney Jr. In 1943 there was the first crossover with »Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man« with Lon Chaney as the Wolf Man and Bela Lugosi as Frankenstein's Monster. Chaney also played the mummy in three of the four »Mummy« films, a role he hated with all his heart.

Finally, Universal had the idea of bringing all the monsters together and so »House of Frankenstein« and »House of Dracula« were made in 1944 and -45. While these films were certainly entertaining, they were just a tired reflection of the films of the 1930s. They had arrived in the depths of the B-movie. In 1948, pairing the monsters with a comedy in »Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein« finally took away any sense of horror.

In the 1950s, science fiction films replaced the horror genre and reflected the fear of communism and the nuclear threat. Alien monsters, mutated spiders (»Tarantula«), ants (»Them«) and other monster-sized creatures took the lead. But in 1954 we meet the good old “King Kong - The Beauty and the Beast” story in »Creature from the Black Lagoon«, directed by Jack Arnold, a film was made that would become the last great classic in the Universal Monsters series.

During an excavation in the Amazon, a scientific team finds a fossilized hand with webbed fingers, a missing link between fish and humans. An expedition sets off into the Black Lagoon only to discover that the extinct creature they are searching for is still very much alive ...

The film was shot in parallel in two units; the main part was shot on the Universal backlot under Jack Arnold's direction. The main roles are played by Richard Carlson, Julie Adams and Richard Denning. Ben Chapman slipped into the monster suit.

The underwater footage (a total of 18 minutes of the film) was shot in Wakulla Springs, Florida, and directed by James Curtis Havens. Underwater, Ricou Browning played the Gill Man. Scotty Welbourne's cinematography is one of the best parts of the film. Film history was made here in particular by the "pas de deux" scene when Julie Adams takes a bath in the river and the creature swims curiously under her (or under stuntwoman Ginger Stanley) and falls in love - and we fall in love with the monster.

Bud Westmore had now replaced Jack Pierce in the mask department at Uiversal. Westmore claimed sole credit for the creation of the creature. Today we know that the design was created by Milicent Patrick and that makeup artists E. Thomas Case, Robert Hickman, Jack Kevan and Chris Mueller also played a large part in the creation of Gill Man. Credit where credit is due!

And congratulations again to the »Creature from the Black Lagoon«, who secured his place in the monster pantheon with the film. Two sequels were to follow.

The Gill Man and the other Universal Monsters are also a popular and recurring theme in action figures and other collectibles. You can find a good selection in our shop:
https://www.space-figuren.de/products_all.php?filter%5B2%5D%5B0%5D=62&page=1

The action comedy »The Fall Guy« is opening in cinemas at the moment.

After a serious accident at work, stuntman Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) gives up his career. However, when the directorial debut of his ex-girlfriend Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt) hangs in the balance, Colt is hired to track down the leading man Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), who is involved in shady business and has disappeared without a trace.

The film is loosely based on the 80s cult series of the same name. A film adaptation of the show was already planned in the early 2000s, but has never materialized to date. Now, in David Leitch, a director was found who, as a former stuntman, was able to incorporate his own expertise. The stunts were mostly implemented practically and without CGI. Ryan Gosling also fits the lead role like a glove, as he has already played stunt people in »Drive« and »The Place Beyond the Pines«. By the way, Lee Majors, who played Colt Seavers in the original series, also appears in the film.

We are looking forward to an entertaining, humorous and action-packed film. The trailer definitely got us in the mood:
https://youtu.be/EySdVK0NK1Y

A whole series of trailers have been released over the last few days, which will mainly appeal to horror and thriller fans. We would like to present to you three of the most exciting ones.

The first one is »The Watchers«. The film follows a young woman named Mina (Dakota Fanning) who gets lost in a forest after her car breaks down. Looking for help and shelter, she meets three strangers who are trapped there and are watched and stalked every night by mysterious creatures. »The Watchers« is Ishana Night Shyamalan's directorial debut. We are excited for the film, which will be released in cinemas this June, because the trailer makes us very curious with its mystery and fantasy elements.
https://youtu.be/dYo91Fq9tKY

Ishana's father, M. Night Shyamalan, will also return to the cinema this year. He sat in the director's chair for the thriller »Trap«. In this movie, Cooper (Josh Hartnett) accompanies his daughter to a pop concert. However, the event turns out to be a trap for Cooper, who is hiding a dark secret. We can find out on the big screen in August what disastrous events this triggers.
https://youtu.be/hJiPAJKjUVg

Zoë Kravitz is also bringing her first feature film, »Blink Twice« to cinemas this August. Waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) meets tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) at a gala, who invites her to vacation with him and his friends on his private island. At first everything seems perfect, but soon scary and inexplicable things start to happen: the other guests don't seem to be quite themselves and then Frida's friend disappears. The trailer really makes us excited for the film, but see for yourself:
https://youtu.be/aMcmfonGWY4

Which of the films are you most looking forward to?

Exactly 70 years ago today, one of the best and most influential films of all time celebrated its Japanese theatrical release. We are of course talking about »Seven Samurai« by Akira Kurosawa.

A farming village is raided by a gang of bandits. The villagers hire an older samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai around him to fight the robbers.

Here is the trailer for the restored version from 2021 as a little appetizer:
https://youtu.be/5dZioLIejeo

The film is a timeless masterpiece! „Every frame a painting“ is a phrase that you hear again and again when talking about well-photographed films and artfully constructed shots. This saying applies to Akira Kurosawa unlike hardly any other filmmaker. His character building; his ability to tell the story visually, to include the elements, to find images for emotions without expressing them verbally; his image compositions; how he frames the action and uses movement; his editing and sound design; all of it is, in a word, masterful.

»Seven Samurai« is 70 years old now, but the film still feels fresh and makes many modern action films look pale and old. It is no coincidence that directors such as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino and many other well-known filmmakers see Kurosawa as their great teacher. Every film student as well as every film lover who wants to learn something about filmmaking should definitely watch »Seven Samurai«.

A film in black and white, in 4:3 optics, and with original sound with English subtitles (if you watch the long, original version at 207 minutes) - at first glance, this may seem almost intimidating to modern viewers. The film also takes a lot of time to develop characters and structure the plot. But it's not a second too long and is told and staged in a captivating way down to the last detail, with powerful images and great emotional impact.

Kurosawa's influence can be seen most obviously in the American John Sturges remake »The Magnificent Seven« or in Sergio Leone's unauthorized remake of »Yojimbo« with »A Fistful of Dollars«. But the shadow that Kurosawa casts extends much further to Spielberg and Tarantino and, of course, to »Star Wars«, which was heavily inspired by »The Hidden Fortress« and also quotes from »Yojimbo« and »Seven Samurai«.

If you watch the film for the first time today, you'll probably be surprised at how familiar so much of it seems, simply because Kurosawa laid the groundwork here.

We definitely want to mention his collaboration with Toshirō Mifune, who appears in 16 of Kurosawa's films. The actor is a primal force. What John Wayne is to the American Western, Toshirō Mifune is to Japanese cinema and samurai films.

This is where Kaustic Plastik and Infinite Statue & Collectibles come into play. The two Italian manufacturers have made amazing contributions to the great film classics like no other and are honoring them with fantastic collector's figures. We were particularly pleased about the announcement of Toshirō Mifune as a 1/6 action figure in two versions from the films »Yojimbo« and »Red Sun«.
https://www.space-figuren.de/products_all.php?filter%5B2%5D%5B0%5D=1188