The Paramount/WB merger clears its last hurdle, plus Toy Robot Video, Munsters from Imprint, Spielberg’s A.I., Logan’s Run & more

Monday, 21 September 2026 13:56

The Paramount/WB merger clears its last hurdle, plus Toy Robot Video, Munsters from Imprint, Spielberg’s A.I., Logan’s Run & more

by Bill Hunt

All right, we’re starting a new week with a ton of new disc reviews, including…

Tim’s look at Adam Carter Rehmeier’s Carolina Caroline (2026) on Blu-ray from Magnolia, and Imprint Asia’s Shaw-Shock: Shaw Brothers Horror Collection – Volume 1 (1976-1984) Blu-ray boxed set, featuring The Oily Maniac (1976), Seeding of a Ghost (1983), and Sex Beyond the Grave (1984).

Dennis’ take on Barry Levinson’s Wag the Dog (1997) and Ray Enright and Raoul Walsh’s Montana (1950) on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection.

Stuart’s thoughts on Jorge Fons’ Jory (1973) and Alberto De Martino’s Blazing Magnum (1976) on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics, David Gleeson’s Once Upon a Time in Cinema (2026) on DVD from Kino Lorber, and Terence Young’s Red Sun (1971) in 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video (a tag-team review with Tim).

And finally, Todd’s reviews of Francesco Lucente’s Starbright (2026), Paradise Bungalows (1987), and Badland (2007) all on Blu-ray from MVD Visual, and Imprint’s Film Focus: Philip Seymour Hoffman (1999-2007) Blu-ray box set, which includes Flawless (1999), Owning Mahowny (2003), and Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007) on Blu-ray.

Watch for more new disc reviews tomorrow and all this week!

Now then, the big news today is that Paramount has finally reached a deal with a group of states (led by California) seeing to block its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, which clears the way for the merger to happen. This will prevent Paramount from leaving the state. In exchange, Paramount has agreed to establish a board of journalists to ensure the independence of CNN and CBS News, they’ve agreed to distribute 30 films per year in theaters, and they’ve agreed to spend an additional $1.5 billion on film production and increase the percentage of those films made in the US. Unfortunately, the FCC has also allowed Paramount to sell a 49.5% equity stake in the company to the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. But at this point, it is what it is. (You can read more today on Variety, the NY Times, and Ars Technica, among many other places.) [Read on here...]

As I’ve said on social media today, this is not the outcome most people in this industry wanted. I’m not particularly thrilled about it—especially what it might mean for all the good folks at Warner Bros. But it’s the world we live in now. So let’s see if David Ellison makes good on his word. And let’s get Hollywood back to work. It’s time to bring serious film production back to Southern California. And please fucking hire the right person or persons to guide Star Trek back to its roots! This film and TV franchise desperately needs its own Kevin Feige to steer the ship, and it has to be someone who understands both Roddenberry’s vision and what legacy fans want from the series. A good start would be: No more recasting Kirk and Spock, and a 98% ban on fantasy, romantasy, superhero, teen, Muppet-y, identity, musical/comedy, cartoon crossovers. Let’s get a fresh crew with a fresh start, and take the premise of this franchise seriously for a change, with real science fiction, an optimistic vision of the future, and high concept storytelling.

Ahem.

If you want to remake Buffy the Vampire Slayer in space, by all means: Go do that.

Somewhere else.

Not on the Enterprise, please.

Now then… in recent announcement news, Arrow Video should be announcing their December release slate in the next week or two. And with a little luck, I think Michael Anderson’s Logan’s Run (1976) will be among the 4K titles revealed.

Arrow’s own Toy Robot Video last week announced its own December slate, which includes Kevin Hooks’ Passenger 57 (1992), Burt Reynolds’ Sharkey’s Machine (1981), and Adam Rifkin’s Detroit Rock City (1999) in 4K—all three licensed from Warner Bros. Discovery—as well as Kim Min-ho’s Unstoppable (2018) on Blu-ray.

Our friends at Via Vision have revealed that their Imprint Television label will be releasing The Munsters: The Complete Series (1964-66) on Blu-ray on November 25. The 14-disc set will include all 70 episodes, plus “17 brand NEW audio commentaries, hours of archival special features, the 1966 film Munster, Go Home, and the two television movies The Munsters’ Revenge (1981) (in a NEW 2026 restoration) and Here Come the Munsters (1995).” You’ll also get lobby cards, a poster, and a hardcover episode guide book, in hardbox packaging. And yes, this will be all region.

Back to Paramount for a moment: The studio should be announcing the 4K Ultra HD release of Steven Spielberg’s A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) in the coming weeks, with a street date around the end of the year. While this is a DreamWorks title here in the States, Warner Bros. has the international rights, so the two studios are coordinating on the details.

Finally, P.T. Anderson’s Magnolia (1999) was recently upgraded to 4K on Digital, so you can reasonably expect Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment to announce a physical 4K UHD release soon as well.

That’s all for now. Stay tuned…

- Bill Hunt

(You can follow Bill on social media on Twitter/X, BlueSky, and Facebook, and also here on Patreon)

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The Paramount/WB merger clears its last hurdle, plus Toy Robot Video, Munsters from Imprint, Spielberg’s A.I., Logan’s Run & more

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