WIRE Buzz: Star Wars Holiday Special doc trailer; Scream 5 wraps; video game awards noms

As much as George Lucas wishes it didn't exist, the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special from 1978 is floating out there in the ether. Lampooned for over four decades, the Christmas program remains the red-headed step-child of the long-running Star Wars mythos. And thanks to a new documentary, we'll finally learn how and why this much-maligned special came to be. Directed by Jeremy Coon and Steve Kozak, A Disturbance in the Force revealed its first trailer today via io9, and you bet your sweet bippy it's set to Meco's Star Wars disco remix released in 1977.

“Most attention on the Holiday Special just focuses on how bad it is and doesn’t go deeper," Coon told io9. "Our film is not going to be 90 minutes of dumping on it because no one wants to watch that. We’re gone really deep in the research and like an onion, there are a lot more layers as to how the Specialhappened than you would expect."

Watch below:

Today's trailer drop could not be more perfectly timed, as the LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special is now available to stream on Disney+. According to the first reviews, the 45-minute film is mostly meant for kids, but goes a long way in redeeming the '78 special.

"We put it in proper context — against the backdrop of the TV-variety genre to see it from the eyes that produced it,” Kozak also told io9. “If you saw the Special when it aired in 1978, you probably liked it. If you saw it for the first time — or saw it again 25 years later on after the launch of YouTube — it was quite jarring."

Coon is no stranger to the world of documentaries. In 2015, he and Tim Skousen debuted Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made, a look at the zero budget and shot-for-shot remake of the first Indiana Jones movie done up by three friends in Mississippi. 

There's no word on when the film will be made available to the public, but you can be notified once it does via the project's website.

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Spylgass Media Group's fifth Scream movie has officially wrapped production and in the grand tradition of modern day reboots, it'll just be titled Scream. Yep, not confusing at all, but look on the bright side — Ghostface is one step closer to hitting the big screen once again. With Wes Craven sadly no longer with us, the new movie was directed by Ready or Not filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett.

"Nearly 25 years ago, when I wrote Scream and Wes Craven brought it to life, I could not have imagined the lasting impact it would have on you, the fans. I’m excited for you to return to Woodsboro and get really scared again," series creator Kevin Williamson, who is executive producing the sequel, wrote on Instagram. "I believe Wes would’ve been so proud of the film that Matt and Tyler are making. I’m thrilled to be reunited with Neve, Courteney, David and Marley, and to be working alongside a new filmmaking team and incredible cast of newcomers that have come together to continue Wes’s legacy with the upcoming relaunch of the franchise that I hold so dear to my heart. See you in theatres January 2022."

Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, and David Arquette are all reprising their roles from the last four entries in the franchise. Melissa Barrera, Kyle Gallner, Mason Gooding, Mikey Madison, Dylan Minnette, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Marley Shelton, Sonia Ammar, Jasmin Savoy Brown co-star.

Quaid addressed fan backlash over the film's title by sharing an image of T-shirts made for the cast and production crew.

Written by James Vanderbilt & Guy Busick, Scream (not to be confused with the 1996 movie of the same name) will hit theaters Jan. 14, 2022.

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The nominees for this year's Game Awards have been announced and The Last of Us Part II leads the pack with 10 nominations, including those for Game of the Year and Best Narrative. In the top category, the Naughty Dog sequel is up against Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo) DOOM Eternal (id Software/Bethesda), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix), Ghost of Tsushima (Sucker Punch/SIE), and Hades (Supergiant Games).

And yes, the current phenomenon known as Among Us has racked up two nods.

The 2020 Game Awards will be held via a digital (and global) livestream Thursday, Dec. 10.

Check out the full list of nominees below: 

Best Game Direction:

Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix)

Ghost of Tsushima (Sucker Punch/SIE)

Hades (Supergiant Games)

Half-Life: Alyx (Valve)

The Last of Us Part II (Naughty Dog/SIE)

Best Narrative:

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim (George Kamitani)

Final Fantasy VII Remake (Kazushige Nojima, Motomu Toriyama, Hiroki Iwaki, Sachie Hirano)

Ghost of Tsushima (Ian Ryan, Liz Albl, Patrick Downs, Jordan Lemos)

Hades (Greg Kasavin)

The Last of Us Part II (Neil Druckmann, Halley Gross)

Best Art Direction:

Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix)

Ghost of Tsushima (Sucker Punch/SIE)

Hades (Supergiant Games)

Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Moon Studios/Xbox Game Studios)

The Last of Us Part II (Naughty Dog/SIE)

 Best Score and Music:

DOOM Eternal (Mick Gordon)

Final Fantasy VII Remake (Nobuo Uematsu, Masahi Hamauzu, Mitsuto Suzuki)

Hades (Darren Korb)

Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Gareth Coker)

The Last of Us Part II (Gustavo Santaolala, Mac Quale)

 Best Audio Design:

DOOM Eternal (id Software/Bethesda)

Half-Life: Alyx (Valve)

Ghost of Tsushima (Sucker Punch/SIE)

Resident Evil 3 (Capcom)

The Last of Us Part II (Naughty Dog/SIE)

Best Performance:

Ashley Johnson as Ellie, The Last of Us Part II

Laura Bailey as Abby, The Last of Us Part II

Daisuke Tsuji as Jin Sakai, Ghost of Tsushima

Logan Cunningham as Hades, Hades

Nadji Jeter as Miles Morales, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales 

Games for Impact:

If Found… (DREAMFEEL/Annapurna Interactive)

Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition (Cardboard Computer/Annapurna Interactive)

Spiritfarer (Thunder Lotus Games)

Tell Me Why (Dontnod Entertainment/Xbox Game Studios)

Through the Darkest of Times (Paintbucket Games)

 Best Ongoing:

Apex Legends (Respawn/EA)

Destiny 2 (Bungie)

Call of Duty Warzone (Infinity Ward/Activision)

Fortnite (Epic Games)

No Man’s Sky (Hello Games) 

Best Indie:

Carrion (Phobia Game Studio)

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout (Mediatonic/Devolver)

Hades (Supergiant Games)

Spelunky 2 (Mossmouth)

Spiritfarer (Thunder Lotus Games)

Best Mobile, Presented by LG WING, Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon:

Among Us (InnerSloth)

Call of Duty Mobile (TiMi Studios/Activision)

Genshin Impact (miHoYo)

Legends of Runeterra (Riot Games)

Pokémon Café Mix (Genius Sonority)

Best Community Support:

Apex Legends (Respawn/EA)

Destiny 2 (Bungie)

Fall Guys (Mediatonic/Devolver)

Fortnite (Epic Games)

No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)

Valorant (Riot Games)

 Innovation in Accessibility:

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)

Grounded (Obsidian/Xbox Game Studios)

HyperDot (Tribe Games)

The Last of Us Part II (Naughty Dog/SIE)

Watch Dogs Legion (Ubisoft Toronto/Ubisoft) 

Best VR/AR:

Dreams (Media Molecule/SIE)

Half-Life: Alyx (Valve)

MARVEL’s Iron Man VR (Camoflaj/SIE)

STAR WARS: Squadrons (Motive Studios/EA)

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners (Skydance Interactive) 

Best Action:

DOOM Eternal (id Software/Bethesda)

Hades (Supergiant Games)

Half-Life: Alyx (Valve)

Nioh 2 (Team Ninja)

Streets of Rage 4 (DotEmu)

Best Action/Adventure:

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)

Ghost of Tsushima (Sucker Punch/SIE)

MARVEL’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Insomniac Games/SIE)

Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Moon Studios/Xbox Game Studios)

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (Respawn/EA)

The Last of Us Part II (Naughty Dog/SIE)

Best Role Playing:

Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix)

Genshin Impact (miHoYo)

Persona 5 Royal (Atlus, P Studios)

Wasteland 3 (inXile Entertainment/Koch)

Yakuza: Like a Dragon (Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio/Sega)

 Best Fighting:

Granblue Fantasy: Versus (Arc System Works/Cygames)

Mortal Kombat 11/Ultimate (NetherRealm Studios/WB Games)

Street Fighter V: Champion Edition (Dimps/Capcom)

One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows (Spike Chunsoft/Bandai-Namco)

UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH Exe: Late[cl-r] (French Bread/Arc System Works)

Best Family:

Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo)

Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time (Toys for Bob/Activision)

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout (Mediatonic/Devolver)

Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit (Velan Studios/Nintendo)

Minecraft Dungeons (Mojang/Double Eleven/Xbox Game Studios)

Paper Mario: The Origami King (Intelligent Systems/Nintendo)

Best Sim/Strategy:

Crusader Kings III (Paradox Development Studio/Paradox)

Desperados III (Mimimi Games/THQN)

Gears Tactics (Splash Damage/The Coalition/Xbox Game Studios)

Microsoft Flight Simulator (Asobo/Xbox Game Studios)

XCOM: Chimera Squad (Firaxis/2K)

Best Sports/Racing:

Dirt 5 (Codemasters Cheshire/Codemasters)

F1 2020 (Codemasters Birmingham /Codemasters)

FIFA 21 (EA Vancouver/EA Sports)

NBA 2K21 (Visual Concepts/2K)

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 (Vicarious Visions/Activision)

 Best Multiplayer:

Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo)

Among Us (InnerSloth)

Call of Duty: Warzone (Infinity Ward/Raven/Activision)

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout (Mediatonic/Devolver)

Valorant (Riot Games)

 Best Debut Game:

Carrion (Phobia Game Studio/Devolver)

Mortal Shell (Cold Symmetry/Playstack)

Raji: An Ancient Epic (Nodding Heads Games)

Röki (Polygon Treehouse/CI Games)

Phasmophobia (Kinetic Games) 

Content Creator of the Year, Presented by Adobe:

Alanah Pearce

NickMercs

TimtheTatman

Jay Ann Lopez

Valkyrae

 Best Esports Game:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (Infinity Ward/Raven/Activision)

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (Valve)

Fortnite (Epic Games)

League of Legends (Riot Games)

Valorant (Riot Games) 

Best Esports Athlete:

Ian “Crimsix” Porter / Call of Duty

Heo “Showmaker” Su / League of Legends

Kim “Canyon” Geon-bu / League of Legends

Anthony “Shotzzy” Cuevas-Castro / Call of Duty

Matthieu “ZywOo” Herbaut / CS:GO

Best Esports Team:

DAMWON Gaming / League of Legends

Dallas Empire / Call of Duty

San Francisco Shock / Overwatch League

G2 Esports / League of Legends

Team Secret / DOTA2

 Best Esports Event:

BLAST Premier: Spring E2020 European Finals (CS:GO)

Call of Duty League Championship 2020

IEM Katowice 2020 (CS:GO)

League of Legends World Championship 2020

Overwatch League Grand Finals 2020

 Best Esports Host:

Eefje “Sjokz” Depoortere

Alex “Machine” Richardson

Alex “Goldenboy” Mendez

James “Dash” Patterson

Jorien “Sheever” van der Heijden

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