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Indianapolis Star
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Indianapolis Star
'Jaws' took a big bite out of the box office and changed Hollywood
After "Jaws" hit the big screen 50 years ago – and smashed the then-current box office record – moviemakers and studios knew from then on they were going to need bigger budgets. The Steven Spielberg-directed film cost $12 million to make, more than three times its original budget and about four times the cost of an average film at the time. Of course, much of that involved the building of three mechanical great white sharks. "Jaws" opened June 20, 1975, on 400-plus screens across the U.S. and Universal spent $700,000 on an unprecedented TV advertising campaign, according to the 2010 book "George Lucas' Blockbusting," to drive movie lovers to theaters and create lines as a show of bloodthirsty demand. Overall, Universal spent "a whopping $1.8 million on promo," notes Empire magazine, which in its special June issue deemed the movie "unequivocally the most influential, important and game-changing summer blockbuster … ushering in new levels of pre-release publicity." Hollywood was never the same after "Jaws" and its effects "are still resonating today," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore. "The sensation 'Jaws' created made the movie theater experience the epicenter of culture and spawned what would become known as the summer popcorn movie blockbuster," Dergarabedian told USA TODAY. Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox The Guinness Book of World Records agrees. "Not only did people queue up around the block to see the movie, during its run in theatres it became the first film to reach more than $100 million in U.S. box office receipts," according to the Guinness description of its first summer blockbuster film award. In just over two months, "Jaws" surpassed previous box office leaders "The Godfather" and "The Exorcist." Despite being blockbusters in their own way, "those obviously were not aimed at younger moviegoers and not released in the summer," Dergarabedian said. While "Jaws" is a movie classic, Spielberg recently said he deemed "The Godfather," the film "Jaws" overtook as the box office godfather at the time, stands as the "greatest American film ever made." By the time "Jaws" finished its domestic run in theaters it had made more than a quarter of a billion dollars ($260 million), which is over a billion dollars today," said Ross Williams, founder and editor of The Daily Jaws website in a new documentary "Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story." The documentary premieres July 10 on National Geographic and streams the next day on Disney+ and Hulu. Shark screen attack: From 'Jaws' to 'The Meg,' we rank the 10 best shark movies of all time Also in the "Jaws @ 50" documentary, filmmaker George Lucas recalled how Spielberg invited him and some others to see the in-development shark. 'He (Steven) wanted to show us the construction of the shark, which was impressive. So I thought, 'Great this is going to be a good movie.' It was obvious it was going to be a big hit.' Spielberg, who discusses the struggles making the film in the documentary, was skeptical. "George looked at the shark and said, 'Wow this is going to be the most successful movie ever made.' and I, of course, looked at George like, 'Well you know from your lips to you know' ... but I didn't believe that." Lucas would go on to write and direct "Star Wars," which was released in May 1977 and would break the box office record set by "Jaws." Then, Spielberg would leapfrog him with "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" in 1982. Before "Jaws," summer had been theatrical territory owned primarily by B movies and exploitation films such as 1974's "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." After "Jaws," the major Hollywood studios, which had avoided summer, now identified it as the prime releasing season, and 'Jaws' inspired hundreds of summer thrillers and F/X pictures," wrote the late Roger Ebert in his book "The Great Movies II." Spielberg himself would go on to spawn many more summer blockbusters including "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Jurassic Park," "A.I. Artificial Intelligence," "War of the Worlds" and "Minority Report" – all hitting theaters in the month of June. Two Indy adventures – "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" and "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" – released in May, the years 1989 and 2008, respectively, and "Saving Private Ryan" in July 1998. Outliers: "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" landed in theaters in December 1977; other December releases were "The Color Purple" (1985) and "Schindler's List" (1993). Spielberg had "hit after hit after hit for so long, and most of the time they were summer blockbusters," Shawn Robbins, founder and owner of Box Office Theory, told USA TODAY. His hit list included thrillers, fantasy and science fiction. "Genres, in a lot of ways, evolved because of what 'Jaws' did for summer blockbusters," he said. "Jaws" also raised the stakes, by moving "the bar in terms of audiences and what kind of thrill they might get," said J.J. Abrams, in the "Jaws @ 50" documentary. For instance, Lucas in "Star Wars," sought to match the thrill audiences got when Chief Brody (Roy Scheider) kills the shark in "Jaws," said Abrams. "When you think about it, it is a bit like the Death Star moment.' Studios' desire to have a release crowned as a summer blockbuster continues today. This summer's success, so far, of "Lilo & Stitch" and "Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning" suggests the goal of a summer hit remains. "'Lilo & Stitch' has been a huge start to the summer season and one of Disney's most successful remakes that they've done," Robbins said. The financial success of "Jaws" migrated beyond the movie theater. Spielberg, along with Lucas, transformed movies into intellectual properties, which could be parlayed into merchandise, theme parks, video games, books, and TV shows, Robbins said. "They became a significant part of the pop culture fabric." ''Jaws' was the perfect movie at the right time to become an absolute sensation and in turn changed the whole model on which Hollywood based its revenue generating capabilities," Dergarabedian said. "Nothing was ever the same after 'Jaws.'" Mike Snider is a reporter on USA TODAY's Trending team. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @ & @mikesnider & msnider@
New York Post
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
‘Jaws' did what no movie could do today — it made the entire world terrified to swim
Shark! Shark! 'Jaws,' which hit theaters 50 years ago next Friday, is known for making many splashes. It was the first hit for a 27-year-old Steven Spielberg, the man who'd go on to become one of Hollywood's all-time greatest directors. Advertisement And the innovative 1975 horror film is considered one of the earliest blockbusters. An estimated one third of Americans went to see it. Those are Super Bowl numbers. 5 'Jaws' caused an entire generation to develop an irrational fear of sharks. Courtesy Everett Collection There's composer John Williams' 'duh-dun' score that everyone can hum, and the classic ad-libbed line 'We're gonna need a bigger boat' that everyone can recite. Advertisement But my favorite feat of 'Jaws' is that the monster movie had such a powerful bite when it was released that it made the masses terrified to so much as dip a toe in salty water for months. Years! No major films come anywhere close to that kind of impact today. Sure, 'Barbie' got groups of friends to get dolled up in pink frocks, and 'Minecraft' pushed a few idiots to trash theaters for kicks on TikTok. But 'Jaws' actually changed how people lived their lives. During the summer of 1975, The Post wrote a lot of stories about the 'shark scare' along the southern coast of Long Island, from East Quogue to Fire Island, that was 'touched off by the movie version of Peter Benchley's 'Jaws'.' Advertisement 'Jaws' was set in the fictional Long Island town of Amity. Suddenly, the real place was Sharksville, USA. 5 Beaches from Long Island to North Carolina and more reported visitors being hesitant to go in the water. Courtesy Everett Collection This one's a real doozy. In August of that year, we reported that two police officers on a boat off Jones Beach encountered a 10-to-14-foot-long shark and started to open fire into the ocean — 15 rounds! — killing the fish. Imagine watching that unfold from your folding chair. Advertisement 'Everybody clapped. But when we left they were still standing on the shoreline,' one cop said of the Jaws-struck crowd. 'You know,' the wannabe Roy Scheider added, 'if it weren't for the movie, this wouldn't be such a big deal.' 5 One third of Americans are said to have seen 'Jaws' in 1975. Courtesy Everett Collection But, boy, was it. Scientists believe 'Jaws' caused an entire generation to develop an irrational fear of sharks. They dubbed it 'the Jaws Effect.' And the fin-phobia extended far away from New York state. That same month in Carolina Beach, North Carolina, a tourism chief bemoaned, 'We feel this movie is adversely affecting our coastal economy.' Films can still hurt local economies today, of course. 'Snow White' did because nobody went to see it. The reverberations of 1970s smashes such as 'Jaws,' 'The Exorcist' and 'Star Wars' were enormous beyond what we can imagine now. 5 'The Exorcist' had a major affect on the 'satanic panic' of the 1980s. ©Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection Advertisement Take the ingenious demonic possession picture. One shaken man who saw 'The Exorcist' in 1973 broke three ribs during a screening. He's not sure how it happened. Ticket-buyers were vomiting at their seats. A theater in Boston kept 'a stockpile of smelling salts' to wake up patrons who fainted. William Friedkin's landmark film went on to become a huge factor in the 'satanic panic' of the 1980s, which saw thousands of unsubstantiated claims of satanic ritual abuse ripple across America. Back then, blockbusters also rocked the Oval Office. Advertisement 5 Even 'Star Wars' made its way to the White House. When President Reagan announced his 1983 Strategic Defense Initiative, a plan to use futuristic technology to prevent a nuclear attack, the press jokingly nicknamed it 'Star Wars.' The moniker stuck. I'm pretty sure we won't be reading about 'the Lilo & Stitch law' anytime soon. Obviously, the world is different. 'Monoculture,' entertainment that's experienced by everybody, no longer exists. We're inundated by niche fare and Saltine retreads. Maybe a movie just can't pack the social punch that one could 50 years ago. Advertisement Then again, no one expected 'Jaws' to explode the way it did. Implode, more likely. Production went 100 days over schedule and nearly $6 million over budget. Some thought its director would never work again. But the next time you sprint out of the water screaming because that fin you saw turned out to be a cute little dolphin, blame Spielberg.
Geek Tyrant
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
Mike Flanagan Offers a Disappointing Update on His EXORCIST Movie — GeekTyrant
Horror fans hoping to see Mike Flanagan's take on The Exorcist in theaters next spring, you're going to have to wait a little longer. While answering questions on Tumblr, Flanagan confirmed that there's 'no way' the film will make its previously scheduled release date of March 13, 2026. The reason why is that he's currently deep in pre-production on his Carrie series for Prime Video, which is taking priority. The filmmaker shared: 'Production hasn't started, we need to finish Carrie first. No way it's coming out next March. Nothing to worry about, though.' Flanagan made it clear the movie is still happening. It's just not ready yet. Universal tapped Flanagan to revive The Exorcist franchise after the lukewarm response to 2023's The Exorcist: Believer , directed by David Gordon Green. While Flanagan hasn't announced a cast or start date yet, he's made no secret of how personally invested he is in the project. The director previously said: 'I chased The Exorcist very aggressively because I was convinced I had something that I could add. This is an opportunity to do something that I believe has never been done within the franchise — something that honors what came before it but isn't built on nostalgia.' That might sound like a risky pitch for a legacy franchise, but Flanagan seems hyper-aware of the weight he's carrying. 'I really just saw an opportunity to make the scariest movie I've ever made. I know expectations are high,' he said. 'No one's more intimidated than I am.' If anyone can pull this off, though, it's Flanagan. He's spent the last decade redefining modern horror on both screens. With The Haunting of Hill House , Midnight Mass , and The Fall of the House of Usher under his belt, not to mention his well-received Stephen King adaptations, his fans have learned to be patient. His latest film, The Life of Chuck , is not really a horror movie, but it won the People's Choice Award at TIFF, solidifying once again that whatever Flanagan touches is worth watching.
Metro
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
13 'cursed' horror films - from tragic deaths to mysterious 'haunted' sets
Horror films are designed to terrify, but sometimes what happens behind the scenes can be so much scarier. For decades, some of the most frightening flicks to hit the big screen have been labelled 'cursed' by fans due to terrible things that happened during filming – and sometimes before it had even begun. The Wizard of Oz, Apocalypse Now, and The Man Who Killed Don Quixote are all films rumoured to have been cursed due to several dreadful occurrences, from onset mishaps, injuries, and even worse. Due to its chilling nature, horror cinema is automatically associated with gory and haunting happenings, so rumours surround several productions that the terrifying scenes onscreen seeped into real life. To mark Friday the 13th, we look at 13 spine-tingling horror films that gave the cast and crew nightmares even when the cameras stopped rolling. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Last year, Glenn Close's The Deliverance was hit by several strange instances one after the other that had fans scratching their heads and wondering if the set was haunted. The cast and crew of the Netflix hit reportedly held 'prayer circles' after director Lee Daniels' dog died, and actor Mo'Nique was rushed to hospital. 'Mr. Daniels had me doing a scene, okay? And we're outside. It was just, the demon was supposed to be on top of the building, so they kept blowing this… I mean, at one point I'm like, 'Lee, do we have this shit because I can't breathe,'' she told SiriusXM. 'So when I got finished, right, my thyroid was a big… I mean, it was just sick. 'Oh, baby. I was like, 'What kind of s**t is this?' It was a lot of things happening with The Deliverance.' Daniels also revealed his sister had been diagnosed with lung cancer two days after filming the chemotherapy scene with Close. It's just the latest in a long line of horror films that have had stranger than fiction events surrounding the production… The Exorcist is often cited as one of the scariest and greatest horror films ever made, but it was famously dogged with problems and freakish occurrences even before filming began. Shortly before filming began on the 1973 possession horror, the set of Regan and Chris MacNeil's home burned down unexpectedly. Further delays occurred when Linda Blair and Max von Sydow, who played Regan and Father Merrin respectively, lost close family members. Things didn't get much better when filming began, with Linda and Ellen Burstyn, who starred as Chris, both sustaining injuries on set – Linda even fractured her spine during the iconic bed possession scene, an injury that had lifelong implications. It has also been reported that one crew member lost a toe during filming, and another a thumb. Across the production of The Exorcist, nine deaths occurred including that of Jack MacGowran, who played Burke Dennings. Where to watch: BBC iPlayer, NOW TV, and Sky Go Lucifer himself appeared to be trying to stop The Omen in its tracks back in 1976. Two months before filming began, Robert Thorn actor Gregory Peck was struck by tragedy when his son took his own life. Later, in October 1975, Peck was travelling to London to film The Omen when his aeroplane was struck by lightning – and bizarrely, this isn't the only disruption lightning would cause. A few weeks later, producer Mace Neufeld was travelling to set when his aeroplane was also struck by lightning, and screenwriter David Seltzer also experienced the same occurrence. When filming began in Rome, producer Harvey Bernard narrowly avoided being hit by lightning – proving once, and for all, that lightning can strike twice… and more. A stroke of luck saw the crew avoid death when the charter plane they were set to use for an aerial shot was used by a group of businessmen, with the plane crashing and killing everyone on board. The hotel the director, Richard Donner, had been staying in was bombed by the IRA the day after filming, and a zookeeper at the safari park where they filmed the baboon scene was killed by a lion, also the day after those scenes were shot. A serious accident could have occurred on set when dogs used in a scene turned on a stuntman and could not be called off by their handlers. But the most infamous tragedy that happened that is attributed to The Omen is that of Liz Moore's death. She was the assistant and girlfriend of John Richardson, the film's special effects expert. The duo were involved in a car accident in the Netherlands in 1976. While Richardson escaped the wreck largely unscathed, Moore was decapitated. What makes it even more terrifying? The accident happened on Friday the 13th, and when John came to, he noticed a road sign that read 'Ommen, 66.6km'. Where to watch: Disney Plus Film fans have long suspected that 1982 horror film Poltergeist was cursed after supposedly using real, human skeletons in the first film, though this has never been confirmed. Before the third Poltergeist film was released in 1988, four cast members had died, including Heather O'Rourke who played Carol Anne in the original production. O'Rourke was just 12 years old when she died of congenital stenosis of the intestine complicated by septic shock on February 1, 1988, before filming of the third film wrapped. In the same year that the first film was released, Dominique Dunne, who starred as Dana, was strangled by her ex-boyfriend, John Thomas Sweeney, in the driveway of her home. She fell into a coma and died five days later on November 4, 1982. Taylor actor Will Sampson died aged 53 from postoperative kidney failure in 1987, and Lou Perryman, who played Pugsley, was murdered by Seth Christopher Tatum in 2009 during a robbery. Oliver Robins, who played Robbie Freeling, was also almost killed while filming a scene where a clown was attacking him, after the mechanical clown malfunctioned and the actor was being choked for real. Where to watch: Available to rent on Prime Video, Apple TV, and the Sky Store Actor Brandon Lee – who was the son of Bruce Lee – was fatally shot on the set of The Crow when a prop gun was accidentally loaded with a real bullet, which hit him in the abdomen and caused his death. While that could easily be attributed to a freak accident, what makes it so much more creepy is the fact that he had apparently predicted his own death after having a premonition that he would die suddenly. Brandon is said to have believed his family was cursed after his grandfather had angered a businessman who had put a curse on them. His dad, Bruce Lee, also died at 32 after apparently having a premonition that he would only live half the time of his father, who died at age 64, due to the curse. Where to watch: Available to rent on Prime Video, Apple TV, and the Sky Store Twilight Zone: The Movie, released in 1983, suffered a terrible, tragic accident on set when three cast members were killed when filming the Time Out segment. Actor Victor Morrow, who played Bill Connor in the film, and two child actors, who had allegedly been illegally hired, were decapitated, crushed and killed on set when a low-flying helicopter spun out of control. The three were killed while filming a scene featuring heavy explosions when debris from the explosions flew 100 feet in the air and damaged the helicopter's rotor. During the subsequent trial, director John Landis denied culpability for the accident, but admitted that the hiring of the child actors Myca Dinh Le, 7, and Renee Shin-Yi Chen, 6, was 'wrong.' Landis, associate producer George Folsey Jr, production manager Dan Allingham, pilot Dorcey Wingo, and explosives specialist Paul Stewart were later acquitted on charges of manslaughter Where to watch: Available to rent on Prime Video, Apple TV, and the Sky Store The Ring Two, directed by Hideo Nakata, was released in 2005 and had some very strange phenomena take place that suspiciously mimicked the events of the film. Nakata once revealed in an interview that water is used in the film to symbolize someone's evil spirit, and during production, the production office began flooding. The film's set costumer Jeannine Bourdaghs witnessed a strange occurrence on the Universal lot in which a deer, reported to be six feet tall, ran at her. She continued that if she had been 'six feet ahead', the deer would have ploughed into her at almost 100 miles-an-hour. This is particularly spooky as in the film, there is a scene in which Samara (Daveigh Chase) attempts to kill Rachel (Naomi Watts) and Aidan (David Dorfman) with a deer. Where to watch: NOW TV, Sky Go, and Paramount Plus For a film about a cursed doll, you would probably expect some eerie happenings on set – but maybe not this horrific. Both the first Annabelle film and its sequel, Annabelle Comes Home, had some very freaky stuff happen during filming, including light fixtures reportedly falling and the film's Annabelle doll moving on its own. Producer Peter Sarfan told The Hollywood Reporter: 'We shot in this amazing, old apartment building near Koreatown, and we had some funky stuff go down. 'In particular, the first day that the demon was shooting in full makeup, we brought him up in the elevator. He walks out and walks around to the green room to where we're holding the talent, and just as he walks under, the entire glass light fixture falls down on his head. And in the script, the demon kills the janitor in that hallway. It was totally freaky.' The doll itself is based on a 'real' haunted doll investigated by Ed and Lorraine Warren, who are fictionalised in these films as well as The Conjuring franchise. In the sequel, Madison Iseman said that when she would enter the Warrens' bedroom set, she would find the Annabelle doll in different positions each time despite no one entering or exiting the room. Star Mckenna Grace also reported experiencing a sudden nosebleed during rehearsals, and that one trailer had a strange power outage that the crew could not find the source of. Where to watch: NOW TV and Sky Go Rosemary's Baby centres on a pregnant woman who believes an evil cult wants to take her baby to use in their dark rituals. But the stories that surround the making of the 1968 movie are enough to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. The most famous being the death of Roman Polanski's pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, who was brutally murdered by Charles Manson's followers a year after the film was released. Producer William Castle also suffered sudden kidney failure after receiving hate mail about the film and apparently screamed 'Rosemary, for God's sake, drop the knife!' as he was being admitted to the hospital. He later died of a heart attack. The composer, Krzysztof Komeda, also died of a brain clot a year after the film was released in a weirdly similar way to how Rosemary's friend, Hutch dies in the movie. In another bizarre coincidence, Beatles star John Lennon was shot and killed outside the building in which Rosemary's apartment scenes were shot. Where to watch: NOW TV and Sky Go The ninth installment of the Amityville series, 2005's The Amityville Horror, focuses on the reported experiences of the Lutz family after they moved into a house in Long Island where Ronald DeFeo Jr murdered six members of his family in 1974, before they moved out just 28 days later after apparently being terrorised by the paranormal. All six of the victims were found face down in their beds with no signs of a struggle, despite police finding that the rifle used to kill them had not been fitted with a sound suppressor and they hadn't been drugged with sedatives before their deaths. None of the family's neighbours reported hearing any gunshots, and those who were awake at the time of the murders say they only heard the family's sheepdog, Shaggy, barking. Ryan Reynolds, who plays George Lutz in the film, reported that he and members of the crew kept waking up at 3.15am every day, which was the time Ronald DeFeo Jr was said to have murdered his parents and four siblings. Before filming began, a dead body of a fisherman also washed up on shore by the film set and the real Kathy Lutz also died during filming. Where to watch: Prime Video and Freevee There is a theme here of possession horror films seemingly being haunted, and that continues with the 2005 film The Exorcism of Emily Rose. The film is loosely based on the true story of Anneliese Michel, a German woman whose family believed her to be demonically possessed. When filming The Exorcism of Emily Rose, director Scott Derrickson revealed that stars Jennifer Carpenter and Laura Linney experienced some chilling supernatural activity. Jennifer once claimed that a radio would inexplicably turn on in the middle of the night, which Scott confirmed to be true in an X post. She said it would play one section of the Pearl Jam song Alice over and over again, repeating the lyric 'I'm still alive.' 'I thought about that when it happened, and two or three times when I was going to sleep my radio came on by itself,' Jennifer told Dread Central. 'The only time it scared me was once because it was really loud and it was Pearl Jam's Alive.' She also said that 'Laura's TV came on a couple of times,' with Scott taking to social media to confirm the chilling story. 'This is true. Also, Laura Linney's radio turned on at night 3 times during production,' he said. Life imitates art in The Innkeepers, Ti West's terrifying supernatural film about a haunted hotel on the brink of closure. While filming The House of the Devil the cast and crew stayed at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, experiencing some strange phenomena during their time there. The staff at the inn believed it to be haunted, which inspired Ti to create The Innkeepers. During the production of the second film, people on set claimed that lights would switch on and off for no reason, doors would swing open and shut, and cast members would receive phone calls with no one on the other end of the line. 'Well I'm a skeptic so I don't really buy it. But I've definitely seen doors close by themselves; I've seen a TV turn off and on by itself; lights would always burn out in my room. Everyone on crew has very vivid dreams every night, which is really strange,' the director told IndieWire. 'The one story that is the most intriguing to me — In the film the most haunted room is the Honeymoon Suite. That's where the ghost stuff started in the hotel. The only reason I picked the room that I picked to shoot in, was because it was big enough to do a dolly shot. No more thought went into it other than pure technical reasons. 'So when we're finishing the movie, I find out that the most haunted room in real life, is the room I picked to be the haunted room in the movie. It could be a coincidence. It's weird that it happened that way.' James Wan was rumoured to have shot hit 2010 film Insidious on cursed grounds when a number of terrifying things happened on set – and this continued into the sequel. Insidious: Chapter Two featured a scene set in an abandoned hospital in which the ghost of a patient haunts a nurse after taking their own life. It was filmed at Los Angeles' Linda Vista Community Hospital, a notorious haunted hotspot among the paranormal community. Cast and crew members reported feeling nauseous while in the building and hearing a ringing sound without ever finding the source of the noise. Saw creator James told Bloody Disgusting: 'I've never shot in Linda Vista. It's kind of funny because Leigh [Whannell] and I have always heard so much about it. For research on the first one, [Leigh] came here to do a bit of ghost-hunting. And I think a lot of that inspired us when we needed a hospital set.' Whannell added: 'I've been here twice, after midnight with ghost hunters. We found these guys on the internet. We went to dinner with them and then they brought us here to Linda Vista, which I didn't know existed. The one security guard lets us in. More Trending 'We walk into this ostensibly abandoned hospital where all the equipment and files have been left as they were on the day it closed down. [Later on] I came here with my wife and we sat in the surgical room, which is supposedly the most haunted room according to these guys.' The filmmaker said they sat in darkness for an hour trying to contact spirits, but experienced nothing. He continues, 'A few months later her friend buys her a voucher to go see this psychic. And he basically asked her, 'have you been to this place recently?' And she said, 'we kind of went on this ghost hunt.' And the guy was like, 'you can never go there again. You came this close to taking something home with you.' 'He asked her if she had seen any blue lights, and she said that she had remembered looking up and seeing these little blue pin lights – she thought it was when you can't see anything and see all these shapes and colors [instead]. And he said, 'that was your aunt and your stepbrother holding them back [the spirits].'' Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: It's Friday the 13th so why not binge these 5 truly terrifying TV shows MORE: 'Chilling' horror with 91% on Rotten Tomatoes soars up Amazon Prime chart MORE: Keira Knightley says Pirates of the Caribbean gave her 'terrible actress' label
Elle
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
Ginny & Georgia Season 3 Cast: The Surprising Age Differences Between The Actors And Characters
Since its comeback, Ginny & Georgia has continued its rise to being one of Netflix's most talked about and popular teen dramas. Set in the fictional town of Wellsbury in Massachusetts, the series follows mother-and-daughter duo Ginny and Georgia figuring out life amid the drama of their small town. One of the lesser-known facts about the series and the actors that portray the characters are their ages in real life, and how close some of them are in age, despite having big age gaps in the series (Ginny and Georgia, for example). If you've ever wondered how old the characters are in real life, as well as more information about their personas, and what the actors who portray them have featured in besides the series, then keep on reading to find out. FIND OUT MORE ON ELLE COLLECTIVE Who is Georgia Miller? A perseverant young single mother who, after fleeing abusive relationships, moves around a lot in the hopes of providing her children with a better life. Who is Brianne Howey? An American actor born on May 24, 1989, in California. She is best known for her roles in The Exorcist (2016), The Passage (2019), and Ginny & Georgia (2021–present). In real life, she is 35 years old, while her character is in her early 30s. Who is Ginny Miller? She is Georgia's 15-year-old daughter, who is currently navigating the difficulties of adolescence, identity, family dynamics and her love life. Who is Antonia Gentry? She is an American actor born on September 25, 1997, in Georgia. She is best known for her roles in Candy Jar (2018) and Raising Dion (2019–2022). Her character is 15 and she is 27 years old. Who is Austin Miller? He is Ginny's younger half-brother, who is pretty shy and is very fond of Harry Potter and magic. Who is Diesel La Torraca? An Australian actor born on November 29, 2007, La Torraca is known for his roles in The Moth Effect (2020), and The Family Law (2016–2017). He is 17 years old, while his character is around 10 years old. Who is Ellen Baker? She is the Millers' neighbour and mother of Marcus and Max, as well as Georgia's close friend. Who is Jennifer Robertson? Robertson is a Canadian actor born on November 24, 1971. She is known for her roles in Schitt's Creek (2015–2020) and Working the Engels (2014). In real life, she is 53 years old, while her character is in her 40s. Who is Marcus Baker? He is Ellen's teenage son, and Max's fraternal twin brother, as well as Ginny's love interest, who is an aspiring artist that struggles with depression. Who is Felix Mallard? Mallard is an Australian actor born on April 20, 1998. He is known for his roles in Neighbours (2014–2019) and Happy Together (2018–2019). He is 27 years old, and his character is 16. Who is Maxine 'Max' Baker? She is Marcus' fraternal twin sister, Ellen's teen daughter and Ginny's best friend who at times has narcissistic tendencies and struggles with feeling sidelined by those closest to her. Who is Sara Waisglass? She is a Canadian actor born on July 3, 1998. She is known for her roles in Degrassi: Next Class (2016–2017) and The Hardy Boys (2020–2022). Her character is 16 while she is 26 years old. Who is Mayor Paul Randolph? The mayor of Wellsbury, in time Paul becomes Georgia's love interest and eventual husband, and through this develops a close bond with her son, Austin. Who is Scott Porter? An American actor born on July 14, 1979. He is known for appearing in Friday Night Lights (2006–2011) and Hart of Dixie (2011–2015). In real life, he is 45 years old, and his character is in his 40s. Who is Joe? He is the owner of a local farm-to-table restaurant called Blue Farm Café. Joe briefly knew Georgia as a teenager. His kindness and generosity left a lasting impact on Georgia Who is Raymond Ablack? Born on November 12, 1990, the Canadian is known for his roles in Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001–2015) Narcos (2015–2017). His character is in his 30s while Ablack is 34 years old. Who is Abby? She is a friend of Max and Ginny and part of the MANG group, who is insecure about herself and struggling with her parents' divorce. Who is Katie Douglas? Born on October 19, 1998, Douglas is a Canadian actor best known for featuring in Spooksville (2013–2014) and Believe Me: The Abduction of Lisa McVey (2018). In real life, Douglas is 26, while Abby is 16. Who is Norah? A friend of Max and Ginny, Norah is part of the MANG group. Who is Chelsea Clark? A Canadian actress born on May 5, 1998. She is known for her roles in Degrassi: Next Class (2016–2017 and The Protector (2022). She is 27-years- old, while Norah is 16. Who is Zion Miller? Georgia's ex-boyfriend and Ginny's biological father. Who is Nathan Mitchell? He is a Canadian actor born on November 15, 1988. He is known for his roles in The 100 (2014–2020), and The Flash (2014–2023). Mitchell is 36 and his Zion is 34. Who is Tris? They are a new non-binary student who is friends with Silver and Marcus. They also play a significant role in Abby's journey. Who is Noah Lamanna? A Canadian born actor, they were born on February 28, 1991. Best known for appearing in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2023), Beacon 23 (2024), and The Last of Us (2025), they are 34 years old, while Tris, is around 16.
