By Eric Ortiz
The Fantastic Pavilion presents a weekly recap with the most relevant news about the world of genre cinema.
News
It was a pretty good night for genre cinema at the 98th Academy Awards, as the vampire picture Sinners (2025) earned four awards including Actor in a Leading Role (Michael B. Jordan) and Writing (Original Screenplay) (Ryan Coogler). Guillermo del Toro’s Gothic horror movie Frankenstein (2025) won three Oscars – Costume Design, Makeup and Hairstyling, and Production Design –, while Amy Madigan took home the Actress in a Supporting Role trophy for her performance in Zach Cregger’s horror film Weapons (2025). James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025) was recognized as well for its Visual Effects.
The RZA’s fourth feature, One Spoon of Chocolate (2025), has gotten an official trailer (via Deadline), ahead of its U.S. theatrical release on May 1. The actioner debuted last year at the Tribeca Festival and is currently being supported by Quentin Tarantino, who praised it as “an old-school, foot-to-ass, Revenge-a-matic.”
Synopsis: “One Spoon of Chocolate follows Unique (Shameik Moore), a veteran and ex-convict seeking a fresh start in a small town. After an altercation with a gang of locals, he starts to suspect they may have something to do with the disappearance of young men in the area, including his cousin. As he digs for the truth, he finds himself the target of not only the gang, but the local sheriff’s office, whose involvement in the disappearances may be even more sinister. Instead of waiting for his turn to be picked off, Unique and those closest to him (Paris Jackson, RJ Cyler) decide to fight back.”
Speaking of Tarantino, his first play was just officially announced: The Popinjay Cavalier is heading to the West End in London sometime in 2027. It’s been described as a “rambunctious comedy of deception and disguise,” set in 1830s Europe, and “inspired by the grand swashbuckling epics of stage and screen.”
Festivals
The Helsinki-based Night Visions Festival (March 25-29) revealed its 2026 lineup and some of the highlights are: Julia Ducournau’s Alpha (2025), Natalie Erika James’ Saccharine (2026), Kirill Sokolov’s They Will Kill You (2026), Curry Barker’s Obsession (2025), Rod Blackhurst’s Dolly (2025), and David Gregory’s documentary Theatre of Horrors: The Sordid Story of Paris’ Grand Guignol (2025).
Can Evrenol’s The Turkish Coffee Table (Cam Sehpa, 2025), Omar Rodríguez-López’s Luna Rosa: The Seventh Ascension of Atabey (Luna Rosa: La 7ª ascensión de Atabey, 2025), and Deathgasm 2: Goremageddon (2025) are part of Fantaspoa’s 2026 program. The Brazilian festival is happening in Porto Alegre from April 8 to 26.
Like it was reported last week, Adrián García Bogliano’s Talking to a Stranger (Hablando con extraños, 2026) is part of the Guadalajara International Film Festival’s Genre Cinema competition. And now you can check out above the horror flick’s brand-new poster, featuring Gigi Saul Guerrero.