I have been following Full Moon's PUPPET MASTER franchise closely for thirty years, and while it has had its ups downs and I haven't enjoyed recent entries nearly as much as I enjoyed earlier ones, I'm still such a dedicated fan that the spin-off film BLADE: THE IRON CROSS is one of my most highly anticipated releases of the year.
BLADE: THE IRON CROSS will be available to watch through the Full Moon Features channel and app (see FullMoonFeatures.com) as of June 26th, and a trailer has arrived online to give a preview of what the latest PUPPET MASTER movie has in store for us. The trailer is embedded above.
Directed by John Lechago from a screenplay by Roger Barron, the spin-off has the following synopsis:
For decades the fans have been clamoring for it, and now Full Moon delivers with the first standalone feature debut of one of its most beloved (and most frightful) characters; the hook-handed maniac puppet, BLADE! Charles Band’s PUPPET MASTER series continues as an unspeakable evil from Blade’s past emerges in the form of a murderous Nazi scientist named Dr. Hauser. As Hauser’s heinous crimes are discovered, the psychic war journalist, Elisa Ivanov, awakens Blade, and together the bloody journey of revenge begins. It’s Herr Hauser’s reanimated undead army versus a possessed doll and a beautiful vengeance-seeking clairvoyant! Who will win, and how will it affect the Full Moon Universe? Find out in BLADE: THE IRON CROSS.
Tania Fox reprises her PUPPET MASTER: AXIS TERMINATION role of Elisa Ivanov and is joined in the cast by Roy Abramsohn, Griffin Blazi, Jarrell Hall, and Bobby Reed, with Alan Maxson playing the title character in moments when Blade is brought to life with some "man in suit" action.
BLADE: THE IRON CROSS is part of Full Moon's Deadly Ten experiment, where the company has promised to livestream every minute of production on ten different feature films. That endeavor is running behind schedule, but will hopefully still be seen out to completion.
This film is not connected to the recently released PUPPET MASTER: THE LITTLEST REICH. That was a Fangoria production. Fangoria and Full Moon have a deal where Full Moon can continue the original PUPPET MASTER franchise while Fangoria builds their own series on the foundation of THE LITTLEST REICH.