SFX – September 2026

Summary

Ian Frazier published a comedic essay called Coyote vs Acme in The New Yorker in 1990, and SFX issue 408, September 2026, opens with director Dave Green explaining how that piece became a film starring Will Forte and Lana Condor, in a £5.99 issue whose cover story sends the DC universe green with Lanterns.

Lanterns takes the cover at page 56, but the horror coverage is the thickest seam: Halloween: The Game brings Michael Myers to consoles at page 26, Insidious: Out Of The Further opens another red door at page 32, and Hungry delivers on-set hippo trouble at page 46. Masters Of The Universe reports from Eternia at page 60, and Innerspace gets a retrospective on Joe Dante's 1987 body-hopping comedy.

Red Alert and the regulars keep pace. Colony puts zombies in an office block, Thunderbirds: Hidden Dangers relaunches International Rescue, Adam Frankenstein and Onslaught arrive from comics, and Adrian Chiarella discusses supernatural romance Leviticus. Reviews cover Possession and Into The Forest, Hannah Kaner is profiled, Saara El-Arifi answers the author questionnaire, and Blastermind and Total Recall close the issue.

—————

Content Guide

▸ Cover Story

p.56 · LANTERNS
The cover feature, trailed as the DC universe going green, covers the Lanterns adaptation under the line that green light spells danger. It is the issue's flagship television piece and the reason the cover is built around a Green Lantern logo. Set against the horror content around it, the tone stands out. Read it before the series lands if you want the mythology straight.

▸ Horror And Genre Features

p.26 · HALLOWEEN: THE GAME
The feature covers the new Halloween game, described as vicious, with Michael Myers plotted as the threat rather than a cutscene. Editor Darren Scott flags in Rants and Raves that he wants to stalk the streets of Haddonfield himself, which tells you how central the game is to this issue. Coverage sits with the wider revival of horror licences on consoles. Check the platform list before pre-ordering.

p.32 · INSIDIOUS: OUT OF THE FURTHER
The next Insidious film gets a feature under the line that one red door closes as another opens, with the cover promising demons taking over the world. The piece addresses how the franchise expands past the original haunting premise. It is aimed at readers already invested in the series. Rewatch the first film's red-door sequence before reading.

p.46 · HUNGRY
Never trust a hippo, says the contents page, and the feature covers the on-set hijinks behind a creature film built around one. The reporting is a production story rather than a review. It is a reminder that practical animal-horror shoots remain awkward to stage. Read it for how the crew handled the physical effects.

p.60 · MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE
SFX goes behind the scenes on Eternia, with the cover flagging time on set with Mekaneck. The piece deals with translating a toy line's designs into physical sets and costumes. Fans of the property get specifics rather than a teaser recap. Look at how the design team handled Mekaneck before judging the trailers.

p.64 · INNERSPACE
The retrospective gets into the guts of Joe Dante's film, treating it as a classic worth re-examining rather than a nostalgia entry. Dante's blend of comedy and body horror is the focus. It is the issue's only substantial look back at older cinema. Rewatch it alongside the piece and the miniaturisation effects hold up better than expected.

▸ Red Alert

p.6 · COYOTE VS ACME
Dave Green directs a live-action and animation hybrid drawn from Ian Frazier's 1990 New Yorker essay, with a screenplay by Samy Burch and Will Forte and Lana Condor as the lawyers suing Acme on behalf of Wile E. Coyote. Green shot on location in New Mexico and used puppeteer Dave Barclay as a performance stand-in. The film was rescued from deletion as a tax write-off by Ketchup Entertainment, which the piece covers directly. Read it for how a shelved studio film actually gets released.

p.8 · COLONY
Zombies in the office is the premise, and the piece covers how the film builds tension inside a workplace rather than across a city. Confined-space horror gets the attention here. It is a short but specific preview. Note the director's approach to sightlines in corridors.

p.10 · THUNDERBIRDS: HIDDEN DANGERS
International Rescue relaunches in a new multi-format project, and SFX covers what form the revival takes. The piece treats the property's puppetry heritage as a live question rather than a museum piece. Long-standing fans get the production detail. Check which platforms the relaunch actually covers before committing.

p.15 · THE GREATEST AMERICAN HERO
The suit comes back, this time in comics form, and the article covers how the property translates to the page. It is a straightforward revival report with the tone the original series had. Readers who remember the show get the continuity questions answered. Look for the creative team's names before you subscribe.

p.16 · ONSLAUGHT
Super soldiers on the run, and the mother chasing them happens to be an army sniper. The piece lays out a premise that puts family conflict inside a military thriller. It is the sharpest high-concept pitch in the Red Alert section. Note the creators involved if the setup appeals.

p.18 · ADAM FRANKENSTEIN
Described as a bloody stitch-up, the feature covers a comics take on Frankenstein's creation as an ongoing character. The piece is candid about how much gore the title carries. It suits readers who follow horror comics rather than film only. Check the content warnings before buying for a younger reader.

p.20 · TEENAGE KICKS
Director Adrian Chiarella discusses Leviticus, a supernatural romance, in a short interview slot. He talks about mixing teen romance conventions with genre horror, a combination that usually collapses. The piece gives a first-time look at a film without a wide profile yet. Watch for festival dates rather than a cinema release.

▸ Reviews And Regulars

p.84 · NETHERWOOD
Jake Arnott turns from crime writing to horror, and the review covers the result under the line home discomforts. Arnott's genre switch is the story as much as the book. Readers who know his crime novels get a clear sense of what carries over. Read it before deciding whether to start with this or his earlier work.

p.78 · INTO THE FOREST
Once upon a time in East Germany, says the contents line, and the review covers a film using fairytale structure in a specific political setting. The piece is clear about what the historical framing adds. It is one of the more interesting entries in the review pages. Seek it out if subtitled genre cinema is your territory.

p.68 · BROUGHT TO BOOK
The column profiles novelist Hannah Kaner, covering her work and how she came to it. Book coverage in SFX is brief but properly reported rather than press-release driven. It functions as a reading recommendation with reasons attached. Start with the title the profile singles out.

p.97 · TOTAL RECALL
The closing column dares to gaze upon The Medusa Touch, revisiting a film most readers will not have seen recently. The tone is affectionate without being uncritical. It is the sort of archive pick that sends people hunting for a copy. Track the film down before reading the spoilers.

—————

Editor's Take

Coyote vs Acme is the best-reported piece in the issue: Dave Green, Ian Frazier's 1990 New Yorker essay, Samy Burch's screenplay, New Mexico locations, puppeteer Dave Barclay and the Ketchup Entertainment rescue are all pinned down, which is more than most outlets managed on that film. The Innerspace retrospective and the Masters Of The Universe set report also justify their space. The weakness is skew: Halloween: The Game, Insidious, Adam Frankenstein, Possession and Netherwood stack the issue toward horror while Lanterns, the actual cover story, waits until page 56, and several Red Alert entries run on little more than a tagline. Rants and Raves burns space on online discourse about Crystal Lake rather than the films covered. Best for horror-leaning genre readers.

Strengths
• Coyote vs Acme reporting names director, source essay, cast, location and distributor
• Innerspace retrospective gives Joe Dante's film proper critical space, not nostalgia filler
• Masters Of The Universe set report covers physical design work, including Mekaneck

Weaknesses
• Cover story Lanterns is buried at page 56 behind two horror features
• Several Red Alert items carry barely more than a premise and a tagline

Verdict: Selective read — buy it for Coyote vs Acme and Innerspace; the DC cover story is thinner than the cover implies.