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Tag: Women of Fantastic Fest

  • 20 years of Fantastic Fest women: Carla Gugino | The Mary Sue

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    Sep 1st, 2025, 8:27 pm

    bruce greenwood and carla gugino standing together

    One of the kings of horror is Mike Flanagan and when he brought his film, Gerald’s Game, to Fantastic Fest, icon Carla Gugino took to the Austin premiere! So for our celebration of the 20 years of Fantastic Fest and the women who make it special, we’re celebrating the icon.

    Gugino has been working with Flanagan for a while but it started with Gerald’s Game. The Stephen King adaptation led to Gugino starring in The Haunting of Hill House, Flanagan’s take on The Fall of the House of Usher, and even her brief cameo in The Life of Chuck. And it is a working collaboration that is one of my favorites in all of film and television. Gugino was at Fantastic Fest with her Fall of the House of Usher co-star, Bruce Greenwood.

    Flanagan loves to use the same faces in his work but what was so amazing about his first collaboration with Gugino in Gerald’s Game was that fans got to see her shine in his particular brand of storytelling. For many fans, Gugino became a household name with her role as Ingrid Cortez in the Spy Kids movies. Fans fell in love with her and whenever she would appear in something, it was going to be a great time.

    Much like her work in Watchmen as Sally Jupiter. But I love seeing Gugino exist in the horror genre. There is something comforting about her and that makes for a great presence in a horror film. Whether she’s playing a protagonist or the villain, I still am taken in by the characters she’s playing and I think that’s special. And getting to see Gugino take to Fantastic Fest for her work with Flanagan is pretty amazing.

    You can see our celebration of all the women of Fantastic Fest here and get ready to cheer on the genre festival for 20 years of great films, big stars, and fun!

    (featured image: Fantastic Fest/Fons PR)

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    Rachel Leishman

    Assistant Editor

    Rachel Leishman (She/Her) is an Assistant Editor at the Mary Sue. She’s been a writer professionally since 2016 but was always obsessed with movies and television and writing about them growing up. A lover of Spider-Man and Wanda Maximoff’s biggest defender, she has interests in all things nerdy and a cat named Benjamin Wyatt the cat. If you want to talk classic rock music or all things Harrison Ford, she’s your girl but her interests span far and wide. Yes, she knows she looks like Florence Pugh. She has multiple podcasts, normally has opinions on any bit of pop culture, and can tell you can actors entire filmography off the top of her head. Her current obsession is Glen Powell’s dog, Brisket.

    Her work at the Mary Sue often includes Star Wars, Marvel, DC, movie reviews, and interviews.

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  • 20 years of Fantastic Fest women: Jamie Lee Curtis | The Mary Sue

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    Aug 28th, 2025, 12:29 pm

    jamie lee curtis on the carpet at ff

    The queen of screams herself, Jamie Lee Curtis, attended Fantastic Fest in 2018 to celebrate the release of Halloween. So why not celebrate one of the most influential women in horror and the reason we have the “final girl” trope?!

    While Fantastic Fest as a whole is a genre festival, horror does thrive there. So premiering the new Halloween there was a pretty fantastic choice. The 2018 take on the Michael Myers slasher films brought Curtis back into the world. Curtis plays Laurie Strode, a young girl who was terrorized by the serial killer Michael Myers one halloween night back in the 70s.

    The John Carpenter film has ushered in multiple spin-offs, lore that is a bit wishy washy, and a general fear of William Shatner masks all thanks to the 1978 film that Curtis starred in. Her connection to the Halloween movies has also led to some of the funniest moments in pop culture history. May we never forget Curtis heading to The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills where her Halloween co-star, Kyle Richards, kept making comments about how they knew each other.

    But Curtis taking the new trilogy to Fantastic Fest is such an iconic move. The new movies, which started with that 2018 film, were all directed by David Gordon Green. After the release of Halloween, fans were treated with Halloween Kills and then the trilogy completed with the 2022 film Halloween Ends which, of course, had a pretty epic showdown between Michael and Laurie (even if they weren’t siblings again).

    What makes Jamie Lee Curtis such an amazing person is watching as she promotes her films. She knows how to get people to come out and see her work and taking an iconic franchise like the Halloween movies to Austin for Fantastic Fest is definitely the best move!

    You can see the rest of our celebrations for the women who have made Fantastic Fest amazing here!

    (featured image: Fantastic Fest/Fons PR)

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    Image of Rachel Leishman

    Rachel Leishman

    Assistant Editor

    Rachel Leishman (She/Her) is an Assistant Editor at the Mary Sue. She’s been a writer professionally since 2016 but was always obsessed with movies and television and writing about them growing up. A lover of Spider-Man and Wanda Maximoff’s biggest defender, she has interests in all things nerdy and a cat named Benjamin Wyatt the cat. If you want to talk classic rock music or all things Harrison Ford, she’s your girl but her interests span far and wide. Yes, she knows she looks like Florence Pugh. She has multiple podcasts, normally has opinions on any bit of pop culture, and can tell you can actors entire filmography off the top of her head. Her current obsession is Glen Powell’s dog, Brisket.

    Her work at the Mary Sue often includes Star Wars, Marvel, DC, movie reviews, and interviews.

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  • 20 years of Fantastic Fest women: Michelle Rodriguez | The Mary Sue

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    Aug 27th, 2025, 12:02 pm

    michelle rodriguez at fantastic fest

    Not all of the women who have taken the trip to Austin for Fantastic Fest are there because of movies. Some go to the festival for the other events and just because it is one of the best festivals!

    As part of our spotlight on the women of Fantastic Fest, we’re shouting out Michelle Rodriguez! Rodriguez was there back in 2010 as part of their Fantastic Debates. In a debate between Michelle Rodriguez vs. Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League, the two boxed it out and it was an epic way to celebrate the festival and how badass Michelle Rodriguez is!

    Rodriguez has been in some of our favorite shows and movies. She played Ana Lucia Cortez in the hit show Lost and then went on to star opposite Vin Diesel in The Fast and the Furious Franchise. Her best entry into genre film to me though is her role as Holga Kilgore in the 2023 film Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.

    And that’s what makes Rodriguez’s career so special. She is always taking on new projects and trying new things and seeing her celebrate Fantastic Fest as part of the debates is just really cool! And luckily, there is a video of Rodriguez getting ready to fight League and look, I think it is pretty iconic that she is so ready to box him. And if Rodriguez said that she’d could kick someone’s ass, you better believe that it is true.

    Sometimes, the amazing women of Fantastic Fest are there because the festival itself is just that cool and if it means we get great boxing matches, even better.

    You can celebrate the women who make Fantastic Fest well….fantastic with us each day leading up to the festival this year and celebrate 20 years of the beloved genre film festival!

    (featured image: Jack Plunkett/Fantastic Fest)

    Have a tip we should know? [email protected]

    Image of Rachel Leishman

    Rachel Leishman

    Assistant Editor

    Rachel Leishman (She/Her) is an Assistant Editor at the Mary Sue. She’s been a writer professionally since 2016 but was always obsessed with movies and television and writing about them growing up. A lover of Spider-Man and Wanda Maximoff’s biggest defender, she has interests in all things nerdy and a cat named Benjamin Wyatt the cat. If you want to talk classic rock music or all things Harrison Ford, she’s your girl but her interests span far and wide. Yes, she knows she looks like Florence Pugh. She has multiple podcasts, normally has opinions on any bit of pop culture, and can tell you can actors entire filmography off the top of her head. Her current obsession is Glen Powell’s dog, Brisket.

    Her work at the Mary Sue often includes Star Wars, Marvel, DC, movie reviews, and interviews.

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    Rachel Leishman

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