WIRE Buzz: Frank Darabont auctioning TWD gems; GDT on 'family horror' in Scary Stories; more

Frank Darabont, the original showrunner and creator of The Walking Dead TV series, as well as the filmmaker behind The Mist and other movies based on the work of Stephen King, is auctioning off items from his personal collection of movie and comic art, posters, props, books, and other memorabilia. Some of the most notable items going up on the block include:

• A “Patient Zero” zombie bust by Greg Nicotero from The Walking Dead. This was the first zombie that Nicotero created for the show, and Darabont carried it with him to pitch the series to TV networks. It's estimated to sell for $6,000 - $8,000.
• The Walking Dead “Bicycle Girl” zombie bust (pictured above), also by Nicotero. This is a limited-edition recreation of the first walker that Rick Grimes sees when he wakes from his coma in the series premiere. It's estimated to fetch $3,000 - $5,000.
• A rare, vintage, Italian poster for Frankenstein (1931), estimated to sell for $20,000 - $30,000.
• A Raiders of the Lost Ark movie poster signed and inscribed by Steven Spielberg to Darabont that could fetch $3,000 - $5,000.
• A full-scale, 8-foot “Lawgiver” statue from Planet of the Apes, created from molds of the actual original figure used in the films. This one could go for $8,000 - $12,000.
• A first-edition, eighth printing of Dracula, signed by author Bram Stoker and estimated to sell for $4,000 - $6,000.
• An original Frankenstein illustration by the late, legendary Bernie Wrightson, published in The Lost Frankenstein Pages. This one could go home with someone for a whopping $100,000 - $150,000.

More info can be found here, although it appears that the full list of Darabont items is not posted yet. The auction will be hosted by Profiles in History and will take place on July 11 in Los Angeles.

Credit: Patrick Lewis/Starpix

After the first full-length trailer for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark went online earlier this week, producer/co-writer Guillermo del Toro and director André Øvredal turned up at the Roxy Hotel in New York City to show a couple of clips from the movie and chat about it.

Del Toro confirmed that the film will be rated PG-13 and — perhaps to the surprise of some — said that he aims for it to be a "family" horror picture. He explained, "We wanted to make a family adventure. I want this to be a nice family horror film. Family is horror in itself, but sometimes, with milk and cookies, you can find something nice to watch."

That sort of make sense, given that the film is based on a series of children's books by Alvin Schwartz. Del Toro added that he thinks horror stories are a healthy option for kids — especially if they can discuss them with their parents afterward.

"The real tragedy of horror is not to have your parents talk to you about it," the Oscar-winning champion of all things genre explained. "I wish my father and mother watched [horror] with me. The world is constantly telling you about everything great, as a kid — in yogurt and shampoo commercials, in movies where nobody looks like you. Horror movies tell you: ‘There is a dark side, don’t worry.’ I think that’s really important.”

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark hits theaters on Aug. 9.

(via Vulture)

Credit: AT&T Audience Network

Mr. Mercedes, the AT&T Audience Network series based on the trilogy of novels by Stephen King about private detective Bill Hodges, will return for its third season premiere on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Brendan Gleeson stars in the acclaimed series as Hodges, who is still feeling the effects of the depraved rampage by the eerie mass murderer Brady Hartsfield. When Hodges' agency, Finders Keepers, takes on the murder of a beloved local author named John Rothstein, the trail leads Hodges and his partners Holly and Jerome into a complex web involving Rothstein's unpublished works and a vicious new killer.

Also returning to the show are Justine Lupe as Holly and Jharrel Jerome as Jerome, along with Breeda Wool as Lou Linklatter, Holland Taylor as Ida Silver, and Bruce Dern as John Rothstein.

Since the first and last books in the series, Mr. Mercedes and End of Watch, told the bulk of the Hartsfield story, this season is based primarily on the second novel, Finders Keepers, which was more of a standalone tale and somewhat less horrific than the other two. And even if the series is ending after this (there are no more Hodges books to adapt), Holly will show up next year in HBO's adaptation of another recent King tome, The Outsider.