The U.S. street date they’re shooting for is definitely 12/1 or thereabouts (call it first week of December), with a simultaneous worldwide release planned. And, in fact, The Hobbit Trilogy and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy are now up for pre-order on Amazon.de with a 12/3 street date (click the title links to pre-order).

Now then... Sony has officially moved the street date for The Resident Evil Collection in 4K Ultra HD to 11/17, delayed from 11/3. This is almost certainly due to the fact that replication capacity is straining under the load of so many catalog titles that the studios are trying to bring into stores for Q4. So adjust your plans accordingly.

Sony has announced The Crown: Season 3 for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 11/3. Extras will include 3 featurettes (Behind The Crown: The Making of Season 3, Charles’ Investiture: Growing Up Royal, and Royal Fabrics: A Look at the Costumes), as well as Majestic Comparison: A Photo Gallery.

Sony has also set Better Call Saul: Season 5 for release on Blu-ray and DVD on 11/24. Extras will include cast and crew commentaries on every episode, a gag reel, deleted scenes, Mesa Verde Bank and Trust TV spots, Ethics Training with Kim Wexler, and 6 featurettes (Tell Me Again, The Good, The Bags and The Ugly, Bagman: The Ambus, Bagman: The Cannon Roll, The Effects for This!, and Crystal Balls).

Meanwhile, and on a related note, Zavvi is releasing a limited edition Steelbook version of Sony’s El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie. You can pre-order that here (via Zavvi US) and here (via Zavvi UK). Keep in mind that Blu-ray titles are typically region locked.

Also today, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has just set Steven Universe: The Complete Collection for DVD release on 12/8. Per the studio’s press release, the set features: “EVERY episode of Steven Universe, Steven Universe Future, the Smash Hit TV Movie, Steven Universe The Movie Plus Hours of All-New Bonus Content!” SRP is $89.99.

Blue Underground has revealed that its Daughters of Darkness 4K release, which is due on 10/27, will include Dolby Vision HDR, Dolby Atmos audio, audio commentary with co-writer/director Harry Kümel, a second audio commentary with star John Karlen and journalist David Del Valle, a NEW third commentary with author Kat Ellinger, 3 featurettes (Locations of Darkness, Playing the Victim, and Daughter of Darkness), NEW theatrical trailers, radio spots, NEW alternate U.S. Main Titles, and a NEW poster & still gallery. The release will also include the original motion picture soundtrack by François de Roubaix on CD, and a collectible booklet with a new essay by Michael Gingold.

Lionsgate will release Death of Me on Blu-ray and DVD on 11/17.

Lionsgate has also set Antebellum for release on Blu-ray, DVD, 4K Ultra HD, Digital and On Demand on 11/3. The 4K release will include Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio. Extras on the Blu-ray versions will include the 2-part The History in Front of Us: Deconstructing Antebellum documentary, 2 featurettes (A Hint of Horror: The Clues of Antebellum and Opening Antebellum), deleted scenes, and theatrical trailers.

Film Movement is releasing Mr. Topaz (1961) on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital on 10/27. The film is better known as the directorial debut of one Peter Sellers. Extras will include the 1951 short film Let’s Go Crazy, a video essay by Kat Ellinger, an interview with Abigail McKern, and a 24-page booklet.

And Arrow Video has announced the launch of a new Arrow Video Channel subscription service in the US and Canada (a UK rollout is expected next year). The service went live on 10/1, and costs $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year. “ARROW begins streaming with headliners The Deeper You Dig, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Crumbs, The Hatred, Cold Light of Day, Videoman and The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast. Also immediately available are perennial Halloween hits Hellraiser 1 & 2, Elvira, Ringu, the complete Gamera series, as well as full collections from the ARROW archives packed with exclusive extras, rarely seen interviews and documentaries.” The service is available on iOS, tvOS, Android, FireTV, Roku, and of course online here: https://www.arrow-player.com.

Finally, we have a bit of sad news to report this afternoon: the legendary rock guitarist Eddie Van Halen has died. His band, Van Halen, was a fixture in the soundtrack of my own teen years, certainly. Eddie was a troubled soul, who struggled with alcoholism and drug abuse. But his talent with an electric guitar was unquestioned. “When Spinal Tap was going to 11, I was going to 15,” he once said, and there was no doubt of it. Eddie was 65. You can read more here at The New York Times and here at Rolling Stone.

All right, we’ll leave you with a look at the cover artwork for a few of the titles mentioned above (with Amazon links if available)...

Now then… fans of Friday the 13th may wish to check back later today or tomorrow for Tim’s in-depth review of Scream Factory’s long-awaited Friday the 13th Collection: Deluxe Edition on Blu-ray.

In the meantime, stay tuned...!

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