Directed by Sonny Laguna and Tommy Wiklund (Stranglehold, Blood Runs Cold) and written by S. Craig Zahler, the mastermind behind Den Of Geek favourites Bone Tomahawk and Brawl In Cell Block 99 (wait, how did this happen exactly?), a new entry into the Puppet Master oeuvre is about to arrive. Pitched as a sort of reboot to Charles Band’s 1989 creation, this film still seeks to expand on the original mythology and bring back some of our favourite evil puppets from the franchise, with Band settling into a producer’s role on this one.
Star of Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich? None other than prolific writer and actor Thomas Lennon (Reno 911! Santa Clarita Diet, LEGO Star Wars) who is perhaps best known for his more comedic projects. Don’t worry, though, the film will also have some stellar horror heft in its line-up – iconic scream queen Barbara Crampton will be making an appearance!
Here’s the first trailer…
And here’s the synopsis…
Recently divorced and reeling, Edgar returns to his childhood home to regroup his life. When Edgar finds a nefarious looking puppet in his deceased brother’s room, he decides to sell the doll for some quick cash. Girl-next-door Ashley and and comic book pal Markowitz join Edgar for a doomed road trip to an auction at a convention celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the infamous Toulon Murders. All hell breaks loose when a strange force animates the puppets at the convention, setting them on a bloody killing spree that’s motivated by an evil as old as time.
Furthermore, UK Puppet Master fans, you can go and see the European premiere of The Littlest Reich at this year’s FrightFest in London tahn! It’ll be showing at 4pm and 4.30pm on 24th August, and you can grab your tickets right here.
The film has just set a DVD/Blu-ray/4K UHD release date in the U.S. of 25th September. Hopefully, we’ll be able to grab ourselves a copy to watch quite soon afterwards here in the UK, if Netflix or Amazon Prime Video don’t snatch it up first. The ever-growing Shudder subscription service could be another contender waiting in the wings, of course…
TTFN