Franchise Detours

Deadpool. That sounds like a f**king franchise. Right? After the character's big-screen debut (kinda) in 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine , it sure didn't seem that way. Ryan Reynolds' take on Marvel Comics' fourth wall-breaking quasi-superhero Wade Wilson aka Deadpool seemed like it had its one shot. Then some leaked footage later, the Merc with the Mouth got a new life. Following our X-Men mega-s...

  After eight films (including the meta-horror of Wes Craven's New Nightmare ) and nearly 20 decades, Robert Englund wore the razor glove for the final time. But in keeping with the history of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Freddy Krueger's curtain call wasn't what anyone expected it would be.   Clare Brunton of W-Rated helps us close down this mega-series with 2003's horror monster mash-up Freddy vs....

Given its title, Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare seemingly plunged the final nail into the coffin of Robert Englund's infamous horror villain. And yet, it was ultimately Wes Craven — writer-director of the original A Nightmare on Elm Street — who gave Freddy Krueger a new lease on life. Film professor and author Ryan L. Terry joins Franchise Detours to slash our way through 1994's Wes Craven's...

In hindsight, it makes sense the diminishing returns of  A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child might signal Freddy Krueger should quit while he was (at least relatively) ahead. So two years later, longtime creative collaborator Rachel Talalay took the director's chair for the "final" entry. Kev Smith  of Suns and Shadows-Cast joins us to discuss 1991's Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare. We...

A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master introduced fans to a brand-new final girl in Lisa Wilcox's Alice Johnson. So all its sequel had to do is build on that character and her story to keep that momentum going. But does A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child deliver a winner? David Rosen of Piecing It Together joins us to discuss how the Stephen Hopkins-directed film taps into the pri...

Thanks to  A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors , Freddy Krueger became as popular as ever. The Springwood Slasher was suddenly a household name, leading to an increased focus on his macabre sense of humor. The result is the entry often known as the "MTV Nightmare." Kevin the Critic returns to the show to discuss director Renny Harlin's A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master. We'll d...

After the mixed reception to  A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge , the franchise turned to series creator Wes Craven and original star Heather Langenkamp. As our eight-part Freddy-led mega-series continues, we arrive at 1987's fan-favorite A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. Podcaster Deanna Chapman joins us to discuss how director Chuck Russell's installment serves as a pivota...

How do you follow a classic like  A Nightmare on Elm Street ? That was the task director Jack Sholder and star Mark Patton faced with A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge. Released less than a year later, the sequel dared to do something darker and very different, with wildly mixed results. Brandon Stanwyck of Fearsome Queer helps us break down the controversy behind A Nightmare on Elm St...

Chucky made some friends. Ash got groovy with Deadites. Now it's time for Freddy Krueger to slash his way into the spotlight, as we kick off Franchise Detours' first horror mega-series since 2021 with an in-depth chat about writer/director Wes Craven's 1984 classic A Nightmare on Elm Street. In keeping with tradition, screenwriter/actor Bri Azmoudeh — who previously joined us for Child's Play and...

As we raise our glasses to the final installment of the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, Franchise Detours dives into the bittersweet, otherworldly journey of 2013's The World’s End. The film ends the series with a poignant commentary on friendship, nostalgia, and the inescapable march of time. Robert Stewart of Stew World Order joins the show to discuss director/co-writer Edgar Wright and co-writ...

Continuing our genre-blending trek through the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, we’re locking and loading for a deep dive into the explosive Hot Fuzz. Armed with sharp wit and a barrage of bullets, this entry takes aim at action movie conventions with a dash of murder mystery thrown in. Joining us is Lauren Robinson of the Beer’d Al Podcast . We’ll explore how Hot Fuzz balances adrenaline-fueled a...

Just as the zombie genre returned to life, Shaun of the Dead emerged as a cult classic that redefined the landscape of horror-comedy. As we dissect the intricacies of the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy in our latest mega-series, we delve into the film that set the tone for Edgar Wright's signature work. Clare Brunton of W-Rated joins us to shed light on how Shaun of the Dead balances gore and gag...

Just when you thought Dark Phoenix put an underwhelming bow on the Fox era of X-Men movies, The New Mutants comes along to further complicate the franchise's legacy. In this BONUS episode to our mega-series following the X-Men movie franchise, we'll go in-depth on the oft-forgotten 2020 film. On paper, The New Mutants should have been an easy win. Taking the X-Men universe headfirst into horror se...

Our X-Men mega-series comes to a close (or does it?) with 2019's Dark Phoenix, as the franchise takes a second stab at one of the comics' most iconic storylines. With X-Men: The Last Stand far behind him, can first-time director Simon Kinberg (who cowrote that 2006 movie) right past wrongs? Darin Lundberg of NostalgiaCast joins us to unravel the mysteries of Dark Phoenix. We'll explore the film's...

The claws are out and the adamantium is gleaming as we dive into the final chapter in the Wolverine trilogy. Hugh Jackman's iconic portrayal of the mutant hero faced a bumpy road in his solo films. But was 2017's Logan, featuring returning The Wolverine director James Mangold, worth the wait? Fans wondered if they'd ever see the character's true potential on the big screen. Fortunately, Jackman's...

After exploring time travel and creating a shared universe with  X-Men: Days of Future Past , where could the sequel go next? Why, the gods, of course! For better or worse, 2016's X-Men: Apocalypse pits the Marvel mutants against their most formidable enemy yet: a big, blue Oscar Isaac. In this episode, Clare Brunton of W-Rated helps us uncover the truth behind director Bryan Singer's most divisiv...

After The Avengers, superhero cinema has never been the same. Suddenly, everything needed to be interconnected, featuring tons of characters and an increasingly complicated timeline. Naturally, the X-Men series retroactively created its own shared universe of sorts with X-Men: Days of Future Past. Fourteen years after the first film , director Bryan Singer's film combined the original trilogy cast...

Hugh Jackman's Wolverine has always been a fan favorite. But  X-Men Origins: Wolverine called into question whether the mutant hero would get the opportunity to carry more than a single solo film. Thankfully, Jackman's desire to take Logan to Japan paid off in the form of 2013's The Wolverine. Adapting one of the character's most popular storylines, the movie marks a departure from its predecessor...

X-Men Origins: Wolverine was meant to slash open a whole new avenue for the X-Men movie franchise. Yet, despite its commercial performance, the tepid reception ultimately led the series to take another approach: going back to basics with a fresh start on the whole mutant saga. In hindsight, it might seem like 2011's X-Men: First Class was always meant to be a prequel to the previous films. But dir...

Despite the less-than-enthusiastic response from fans and critics, 2006's trilogy-ending  X-Men: The Last Stand did at least offer fans something of a sense of closure (that final shot and post-credits scene notwithstanding). But it also outperformed its two predecessors at the box office. So it didn't take long for Fox to begin exploring ways to extend the franchise. On paper, a solo film explori...

We interrupt your regularly scheduled  mutant superhero mega-series already in progress for, well, another mutant superhero mega-series. It's time to dip back into the sewers for a return to the world of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles . Seven years have passed since the latest franchise revival fizzled out with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Ma...

Our X-Men mega-series continues, spanning 10 films and nearly 20 years. Following the success of  X2: X-Men United , the franchise takes its first major shift. Director Brett Ratner (Rush Hour) steps in to helm 2006's polarizing X-Men: The Last Stand. But is it a satisfying finale to the original trilogy of mutant adventures? Or is the film the X-Men series' first wrong turn? Jeremiah Stewart of L...

Welcome back, fellow mutant enthusiasts! As we celebrate the 23rd anniversary of the X-Men film franchise, we continue our journey through the groundbreaking series that revolutionized the superhero genre. In this episode, we dive deep into the sequel that took everything we loved about the first film and elevated it to new heights: 2003's X2: X-Men United. Phoenix Clouden of Film Code helps us un...

Twenty-three years have passed since the mutants of Marvel Comics made their big-screen debut. And it's an understatement to say the cinematic landscape has itself mutated since X-Men hit theaters. So on this 23rd anniversary of the film that started it all, we're taking a look back at Fox's dearly departed mutant saga with a mega-series covering 10 X-Men films. Brian Skutle of Sonic Cinema joins...

Walt Disney is a name that has become synonymous with family entertainment. But back when Disney himself was running the company, the studio was pushing the boundaries of feature animation. And perhaps few films are as much of a testament to that as 1940's Fantasia. Brian Skutle of Sonic Cinema joins the show to discuss that film's ground-breaking blend of classical music and animated storytelling...