Legend – Page 2 – Legend is the channel for people who want to indulge in their favourite genre classics. From action to thriller, suspense to sci-fi, we guarantee to keep everyone on the edge of their seat.

April 25, 2024April 25, 2024

Crime and sci-fi adventures headline May 2024 premieres on LEGEND

Crime dramas, action thrillers and sci-fi adventures headline the May line-up on LEGEND, with UK TV premieres for prison drama A VIOLENT MAN, starring an outstanding Craig Fairbrass and UNCHAINED, a riveting crime thriller starring Adrien Brody, Antonio Banderas and John Malkovich.

Channel premieres include two Dominic Cooper thrillers, STRATTON and THE ESCAPIST, which also stars Brian Cox and Joseph Fiennes. Then there’s hard-hitting Brit gangster drama WE STILL KILL THE OLD WAY, and superior sci-fi drama THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT, starring Ashton Kutcher.

Plus, there are first time showings for the star-studded LUCKY NUMBER SLEVIN, with Josh Harnett, Bruce Willis, Ben Kingsley and Morgan Freeman, the all-action sci-fi thriller DOUBLE TEAM, which teams Jean-Claude Van Damme and Mickey Rourke, and Italian WW2 film COMMANDOS, starring Lee Van Cleef.

Also, the cult fantasy/science fiction anthology series THE TWILIGHT ZONE, continues on Saturday nights with Season 2.

Here’s all you need to know:

A case of mistaken identity on the 3rd with LUCKY NUMBER SLEVIN where Slevin Kelevra (Josh Hartnett) into the middle of a war being plotted by two of New York City’s most rival crime bosses, ‘The Boss’ (Morgan Freeman) and ‘The Rabbi’ (Ben Kingsley). Under constant surveillance by Detective Brikowski (Stanley Tucci) and assassin Goodkat (Bruce Willis), Slevin must get them before they get him. THE ESCAPIST on the 4th is set fourteen years into the life sentence of convict Frank Perry (Brian Cox) who plans to escape from prison after learning his estranged daughter has fallen ill. He develops an ingenious escape plan and recruits a dysfunctional band of escapists – misfits with a mutual dislike for one other but united by their desire to escape their hell hole of an existence. Also stars Dominic Cooper and Joseph Fiennes. Then we have paranormal drama on the 9th you have the chance to experience THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT. Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher) has lost crucial moments of his life, his childhood scarred by a series of terrifying events he can’t remember. When Evan realises that by reading his diaries, he can unlock the past and go back in time, he tries to reclaim the missing memories by tampering with the past… with unexpected and disastrous results.

Fast-paced action and adventure on the 11th in STRATTON. Stratton (Dominic Cooper) is a dedicated SBS operative working alongside MI5. After losing his American counterpart on a mission, Stratton meets Sumner (Connie Nielsen) from MI6, who happens to have a past with Barofski, the terrorist he was targeting. Sumner deploys a team to capture him, and it becomes a race against time for the team to track down Barofski before he unleashes terror on London. A true classic on the 17th in COMMANDOS which is set during World War II, where an Italian American commando outfit disguised as an Italian Army unit is parachuted behind enemy lines in North Africa. Stars Lee Van Cleef and Jack K. Friday the 17th contains a hard-hitting UK TV premiere, A VIOLENT MAN. The life of a violent and institutionalised prisoner (Craig Fairbrass) is turned upside down when his estranged daughter Claire (Zoe Tapper,) requests to meet him and Marcus (Stephen Odubola), a 19-year-old serving his first sentence, becomes his new cellmate.

Another UK TV premiere is happening on the 18th, UNCHAINED. When an attempted robbery goes wrong, three career criminals (Brody, Malkovich and Culkin) make a run for it, hiding out in an abandoned industrial building. The group are terrified to discover the bloodied presence of De Niro, an attack dog who’s been abandoned by his owner, gangster Blue (Antonio Banderas). Trying to keep their distance from this new threat, and with the law closing in, the group start fighting for their lives. WE STILL KILL THE OLD WAY on the 24th is a contemporary take on a classic plot. When his brother is brutally murdered at the hands of a sadistic mob of youths, expat Richie (Ian Ogilvy) is forced to trade the sun-kissed calm of Spain for the savage streets of London and return to his gangster roots on a violent quest for vengeance. With the odds towering against him alone, Richie must reunite with his old firm and prepare for battle in their biggest face-off yet. Our final channel premiere is on the 25th, DOUBLE TEAM. Top counterterrorist, Jack Quinn (Claude Van Damme) wants to get out of the spy game. But on the eve of his final mission, he misses his target and loses everything in a split-second. Now, his wife and unborn son have become the target of terrorist Stavros (Mickey Rourke). Quinn must turn to the one man who can put him back in the game – weapons specialist Yaz (Dennis Rodman).

April 12, 2024April 12, 2024

LEGEND steals the limelight with Crime Wave Season

From Monday 22nd to Saturday 27th of April, at 9pm, LEGEND presents a CRIME WAVE SEASON, where cops and criminals collide in a collection of robberies, heists and getaways movies, highlighted by the Channel premieres of Steven Seagal’s crime-busting HALF PAST DEAD, and heist action thriller ARMORED, starring Matt Dillon and Laurence Fishburne.

Then we have a double dastardly dose of Bruce Willis in two crooked thrillers – as a wronged crime boss in PRECIOUS CARGO, and a corrupt bank owner in MARAUDERS. Plus, there’s Walter Hill’s classic getaway thriller THE DRIVER, starring Ryan O’Neil and Brit old-school burglary caper THE HATTON GARDEN JOB, with Joely Richardson and Larry Lamb.

Let’s start with HALF PAST DEAD on the 22nd where Alcatraz has become a battleground as criminal-mastermind Donny (Morris Chesnut) assembles a commando team, the 49ers, to infiltrate the refurbished high-tech fortress to force Lester (Bruce Weitz), a death row inmate, to reveal the whereabouts of $200 million in gold. Undercover FBI agent Sascha (Steven Seagal) must rally the other inmates to stop the invaders. Then on the 23rd in PRECIOUS CARGO International thief Jack (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and his highly trained team get a run for their money when Karen (Claire Forlani), Jack’s gorgeous femme fatale ex, shows up and drags him into a dangerous billion-dollar heist. Little does Jack know they’re stealing from Eddie, (Bruce Willis) Karen’s ex-boss. If you want classic actin then THE DRIVER on the 24th is for you. Ryan O’Neal plays a get-away driver. Bruce Dern plays the relentless detective who sets out to trap him and Isabella Adjani plays the mysterious gambler who goes along for the thrill of the game. It is a tale of confrontation between two men of iron will. Each of the characters is the best at what they do; each is committed to a lifestyle that thrives on competition. Who will come out on top?

MARAUDERS on the 25th is a more contemporary crime thriller. While investigating a brutal robbery-homicide at a bank, a team of FBI agents (Christopher Meloni, Dave Bautista and Adrian Grenier) begins to unravel a sinister conspiracy involving the bank’s powerful owner (Bruce Willis). The action-packed crime thriller is directed by Steven C. Miller from a script by Michael Cody and Chris Sivertson. One of the most audacious crimes of the last few decades comes vividly to life on the 26th in THE HATTON GARDEN JOB. A remarkable true story set follows four ageing East End criminals – led by 76 year-old Brian Reader (Larry Lamb) who pull off the largest heist in English legal history. With everyone from the Hungarian mob to Scotland Yard on their tail, these old-school – and just plain old – villains set about achieving the seemingly impossible. But will they commit the crime of the century or pay with their lives? The season ends on the 27th, ARMORED. A crew of officers at an armored transport security firm risk their lives when they embark on the ultimate heist – against their own company. Armed with a seemingly fool-proof plan, the men plan on making off with a fortune, no harm done. But when an unexpected witness interferes, the plan quickly unravels, and all bets are off. Directed by Nimrod Antal. With Matt Dillon, Jean Reno, Laurence Fishburne, Amaury Nolasco.

March 29, 2024March 29, 2024

Thrills, kills and The Blob as LEGEND serves up April premieres

LEGEND springs into action this April with eleven Channel premieres, including the UK TV premieres of two action thrillers starring the legendary Bruce Willis – AMERICAN SIEGE and HARD KILL.

There are also Channel premieres for sci-fi cult classic DEATH RACE 2000, Italian spaghetti Western A REASON TO LIVE, A, REASON TO DIE, starring Telly Savalas and James Coburn, Alan J. Pakula’s THE DEVIL’S OWN, starring Harrison Ford and Brad Pitt, Brit crime drama VILLIAN, and highly-rated mystery thriller BUTTERFLY ON A WHEEL, starring Piece Brosnan and Gerard Butler.

This month’s THE VINTAGE VAULT, which journeys into the history of genre cinema every Sunday night, is spearheaded by the Channel premieres of BEWARE! THE BLOB, Larry Hagman’s sci-fi comedy horror, which is a sequel to The Blob and THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA, the eighth film in Hammer’s Dracula series, and the seventh and final one to feature Christopher Lee in the iconic title role.

Legend premieres in transmission order:

Let’s look at the 5th with the UK TV PremiereHARD KILL where a team of fearless mercenaries are hired by billionaire tech CEO Donovan Chalmers (Bruce Willis) to protect a piece of technology that, if exposed, could destroy the world. Their mission becomes even higher risk when Chalmers’ daughter is kidnapped by a dangerous terrorist group, who will stop at nothing to obtain the tech. Bruce Willis is back on the 20th in another UK TV Premiere, AMERICAN SEIGE. Small-town sheriff Ben Watts (Willis) has to contend with a gang of thieves who have taken a wealthy doctor hostage in a race against time. Also stars Rob Gough and Timothy V. Murphy.

Back to the 3rd with BUTTERFLY ON A WHEEL concerning Neil and Abby Randall who are a happily married couple living in the Chicago suburbs: bringing up their five-year-old daughter. Then their daughter is kidnapped, and in the blink of an eye Neil and Abby’s safe and secure existence is turned upside down – at the mercy of a dangerous man who wants to exert total control over their lives. A REASON TO LIVE OR DIE on the 10th stars Telly Savalas and James Coburn. After an army officer, who surrendered his fort to the Confederates without a fight is labelled a coward, he decides to regain his honour by leading a group of prisoners on a mission to recapture it. A true cult classic on the 12th where we invite you to DEATH RACE 2000. Set in a dystopian future, a cross country automobile race requires contestants to run down innocent pedestrians to gain points that are tallied based on each kill’s brutality. This cult classic is produced by Roger Corman, directed by Paul Bartel, and stars David Carradine.

We meet THE DEVIL’S OWN on the 13th where Brad Pitt stars as Frankie McGuire, a young Irishman committed to the struggle against the British, who comes to the U.S. on a secret mission. He moves into the suburban Staten Island home of New York Police Sergeant Tom O’Meara (Harrison Ford) and his wife. When violence enters Tom’s home, he begins to suspect Rory is somehow involved. More action on the 19th with Craig Fairbrass in VILLAIN. After being released from prison after ten years, Eddie Franks (Fairbrass) attempts to help his family by reconnecting with his daughter and clearing his brother’s debt. Despite his best efforts, he finds himself drawn back into a life of crime, with devastating consequences.

THE VINTAGE VAULT has a pair of chilling classics for you. BEWARE! THE BLOB on the 21st was directed by DALLAS legend Larry Hagman. A technician brings a frozen specimen of the original Blob back from the North Pole. When his wife accidentally defrosts the thing, it terrorizes the populace, including the local hippies, kittens, and bowlers. This sequel to The Blob Stars Robert Walker and Gwynne Gilford. The one of the last great Hammer movies on the 28th, THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA. In 1974, Professor Lorrimer Van Helsing (Peter Cushing) investigates a satanic cult on behalf of Scotland Yard, only to discover a plot by Count Dracula (Christopher Lee) to wipe out humanity with a bubonic plague.

March 21, 2024April 3, 2024

LEGEND celebrates ‘The Duke’ with a John Wayne weekend

Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st of March sees LEGEND celebrate the cinematic career of one of Hollywood’s screen legends with JOHN WAYNE WEEKEND, a collection of films starring ‘The Duke’. This is highlighted by the Channel premiere of classic comedy western MCLINTOCK!. Also featured are Henry Hathaway’s deeply affecting drama THE SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS, Cecil B. DeMille’s historical spectacle REAP THE WILD WIND, the gun-slinging ANGEL AND THE BADMAN, THE CONQUEROR, in which Wayne stars as Genghis Khan, and cold-war thriller JET PILOT.

John Wayne Weekend films in transmission order:

We start at 2pm on the Saturday with THE SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS. Based on Harold Bell Wright’s novel about an Ozark moonshiner who vows to kill the father who deserted him long ago, “Shepherd of the Hills” features a well-crafted, patient performance from screen legend John Wayne. Gorgeously filmed in vibrant Technicolor, this is a rustic and affecting story of surprising depth. REAP THE WILD WIND follows with Wayne starring as the captain of a salvage business in 19th century Key West. In an era when piracy ran rampant on the high seas, His job is to return sunken treasure to plundered merchants. Also starring Paulette Goddard as Wayne’s romantic interest, and Ray Milland as his rival for her affections. Day one ends with a true classic, ANGEL AND THE BADMAN. John Wayne stars in this well-crafted Western classic as a gunslinger wounded by his arch-rival and taken in and sheltered by a Quaker family. He falls in love with the daughter of the household, a dark-eyed angel (Gail Russell) who could entice Satan himself to the path of virtue.

Then on Sunday from 2pm we have another terrific trio starting with THE CONQUERER. John Wayne stars as Genghis Khan, the famed Mongolian warlord who must do battle against the rival tribe that killed his father. Susan Hayward is the Tartar princess he has kidnapped and intends to woo in order to fully establish his impressive empire. Produced by Howard Hughes, this sweeping epic also features a powerful performance by Agnes Moorehead. Then we reach for the skies in JET PILOT. John Wayne stars as an air force colonel charged with protecting a defecting Russian jet pilot (Janet Leigh) who is also secretly a spy. A classic Howard Hughes production, this classic action drama features enthralling aerial photography that includes some stunt work completed by aviation pioneer Chuck Yaeger. We end with a channel premiere, MCLINTOCK!. Aging rancher George Washington McLintock (John Wayne), a wealthy self-made man, is forced to deal with numerous personal and professional problems. Seemingly everyone wants a piece of his enormous farmstead, and as McLintock tries to juggle his various adversaries, his wife, who left him two years previously, suddenly returns. But she isn’t interested in her husband — she wants custody of their daughter. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, the project was produced by Wayne’s company, Batjac Productions.

February 28, 2024February 28, 2024

LEGEND swings into action with ten premieres for March

LEGEND swings into action with ten Channel premieres, including U-TURN, Oliver Stone’s superior neo-noir thriller, starring Sean Penn and Jennifer Lopez, JAGGED EDGE, Richard Marquand’s tense hit drama, starring Glenn Close and Jeff Bridges and DRIVE HARD, a fast-paced Aussie buddy movie starring John Cusack and Thomas Jane. Thomas Jane also turns up in riveting crime thriller BULLETPROOF and there’s hard-boiled detective action in EYE FOR AN EYE, starring John Travolta and Morgan Freeman.

The other channel premieres this month are NOWHERE TO RUN, an action adventure starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Rosanna Arquette, survivalist thriller WHILE SHE WAS OUT, starring Kim Basinger and exec produced by Guillermo Del Toro, underwater WW2 mystery RENEGADES and action-packed epic, EYE OF THE TIGER, starring Gary Busey.

This month’s THE VINTAGE VAULT, which journeys into the history of genre cinema every Sunday night, is spearheaded by the Channel premiere of DOCTOR FAUSTUS, a mesmerising adaptation of the Christopher Marlowe play. As well as starring in the title role, Richard Burton also co-directed, alongside Nevill Coghill, his Oxford University mentor.

Here’s all the info you need:

We start om the 2nd with the Channel Premiere of EYE FOR AN EYE. Carson Phillips (John Travolta) is a hard-drinking L.A. private eye, who takes a case in his old hometown of Galveston, Texas. While searching for a missing woman, Philips must confront a crime boss (Morgan Freeman) and his own dark, disturbing past. WHILE SHE WAS OUT on the 8th has Guillermo del Toro as Executive Producer. In this riveting revenge thriller Kim Basinger stars as Della, a suburban housewife, who flees her abusive husband on Christmas Eve, only to be chased down by a gang of thugs. Stranded in a desolate forest after a dangerous car chase, she is pushed to breaking point, her attackers in hot pursuit. The following night we meet RENEGADES. A team of Navy SEALS on assignment in war-torn Europe, discover a treasure of valuable gold at the bottom of a lake. In an effort to help the locals, they go rogue and engineer a heist to retrieve the gold and return it to its rightful owners. But in a deadly turn of events, they are detected by the enemy and left with only ten hours to carry out their mission.

We meet the EYE OF THE TIGER on the 15th where a former Vietnam veteran and ex-con Buck Matthews (Gary Busey), finds that his hometown has been overrun by a sadistic motorcycle gang, so he enlists the help of a fellow vet to win the town back. Yaphet Kotto and William Smith also star. A classic thriller on the 16th, JAGGED EDGE is where a newspaper heiress has been savagely murdered in the beach house she shares with her husband, Jack Forrester (Jeff Bridges). When a witness connects him to the murder weapon, he is arrested. Jack chooses sharp former prosecutor Teddy Barnes (Glenn Close) to represent him, but when she becomes emotionally attracted to her client not only does that compromise her professional ethics but may put her in mortal danger. Classic chills on the 17th as we introduce you to DOCTOR FAUSTUS. In an attempt to master all human knowledge, Wittenberg University’s greatest scholar, Doctor Faustus (Richard Burton), strikes an unholy bargain with the Devil: in exchange for his soul, Faustus will gain youth, wisdom and The Woman (Elizabeth Taylor), a living embodiment of Helen of Troy. Blinded by visions of terror and joy, Faustus loses his ability to repent and willingly follows The Woman as she leads him down through the gates of Hell.

In BULLETPROOF on the 21st we follow two LAPD officers as they hunt two cop killers on the loose in a city about to boil over. ‘Training Day’ meets ‘End of Watch’, ‘Bulletproof’ is a brutal look at the extreme danger and unthinkable sacrifices police officers face when they commit to serve and protect the public starring Thomas Jane and Luke Kleintank. High-octane action on the 23rd in DRIVE HARD. A former race car driver (Thomas Jane) is abducted by a mysterious thief (John Cusack) and forced to be the wheelman for a crime that puts them both in the sights of the cops and the mob who are determined to catch them, dead or alive. Hard hitting drama on the 29th as we make a U-TURN. On his way to Las Vegas to pay back a gambling debt, hustler Bobby Cooper (Sean Penn) ends up in the town of Superior, Arizona, when his car breaks down. There he meets Grace McKenna (Jennifer Lopez) and her powerful husband Jake (Nick Nolte). Jake offers Bobby money to kill Grace. Then Grace asks Bobby to get rid of Jake. The stakes are high as Bobby is locked into a deadly game of lust, madness and money. Our final Channel Premiere is on the 30th, NOWHERE TO RUN. After escaping from prison, Sam Gillen (Jean-Claude Van Damme) needs a place to lie low. Clydie (Rosanna Arquette), a young widow with two small children, needs someone to help fight the corrupt developers trying to drive her off her land. Sam Becomes involved with Clydie and her kids, who offer him a sense of purpose and he vows to protect them from the ruthless hired gun sent to persuade Clydie to sell her land.

January 29, 2024

LEGEND prepares for battle with War Stories Season

From Monday February 19th – Saturday February 24th, at 9pm, LEGEND goes into battle with WAR STORIES, a season of warfare action and drama, spearheaded by the Channel premieres of Enzo G. Castellari’s terrific WW2 exploitation actioner THE INGLORIOUS BASTARDS (which inspired Tarantino’s 2009 movie) and the Battle of the Bulge thriller COMPANY OF HEROES, starring Tom Sizemore and Vinnie Jones.

Other titles deployed are hard-hitting WW2 thrillers WAR PIGS, starring Dolph Lundgren and Mickey Rourke and WHEELS OF TERROR, starring Bruce Davison, Oliver Reed and David Carradine. Then there’s desert sniper thriller THE WALL, starring John Cena and Sidney J. Furie’s aerial action sequel IRON EAGLE II, starring Louis Gosset Jr.

Other channel premieres include full-throttle thriller THE COURIER, starring Olga Kurylenko, Terence Young’s wild spaghetti western RED SUN, gritty Canadian crime drama 2:22, starring Val Kilmer, Tony Scott’s acclaimed psychological thriller THE FAN, starring Robert De Niro and Wesley Snipes, KING ARTHUR: EXCALIBUR RISING, a vivid re-imagining of the Arthurian legend, hot crime drama NO MERCY, starring Richard Gere and Kim Basinger and the sci-fi thriller PROSPECT, heralded as the best indie sci-fi since Moon.

This month’s THE VINTAGE VAULT, which journeys into the history of genre cinema every Sunday night, includes such classics as THE CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF, THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS (1962), DR TERROR’S HOUSE OF HORRORS and THE PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES.

Here’s all the details you need to know:

Set against a gritty London backdrop, THE COURIER on the 3rd stars Olga Kurylenko as a tough motorbike courier who discovers that one of the packages she’s transporting is a bomb, and that it is set to kill the only witness able to testify against ruthless crime lord Ezekiel Mannings (Gary Oldman). Can she evade Mannings’ heavily armed army ad deliver justice? A channel premiere of a 70s on the 8th, RED SUN. A gang robs a train and steals a ceremonial Japanese sword meant as a gift for the U.S. President, prompting a manhunt to retrieve it. Starring Charles Bronson, Toshir? Mifune, Alain Delon and Ursula Andress.

Another date for your diary is the 9th and the channel premiere of 2:22. The plan was easy. The job was not. On a snowy night, a tight-knit crew of four criminals plan to pull of a routine heist. When things go horribly wrong, friendship, loyalty and trust are pushed to the limit. A Canadian crime thriller directed by Phillip Guzman and starring Mick Rossi, Robert Miano, Aaron Gallagher, and Jorge A. Jiminez. A stunning, star-studded thriller on the 10th with Robert De Niro and Wesley Snipes, THE FAN. The impressive career of baseball superstar Bobby Rayburn (Snipes) means more to Gil Renard (De Niro) than any other fan. However, Renard’s fixation starts to cross the line when his own life begins spiralling downward, and when his hero is replaced in the team, Renard’s obsession takes a deadly turn.

Legends rise on LEGEND on the 15th in KING ARTHUR: EXCALIBUR RISING. In the heat of battle, Arth-yr lands his son, Mordred, a fatal blow with the legendary Excalibur, sword before receiving a deadly wound himself. Before dying, he tasks his loyal knight Sir Bedivere with returning Excalibur, the source of Arth-yr’s powers, to the Lady in the Lake. Then we’re back in the present on the 17th for NO MERCY. Chicago detective Eddie Jillette (Richard Gere) poses as a hitman, but things go wrong, and his partner is brutally murdered. He follows suspect Michel (Kim Basinger) back to New Orleans and learns she in connected to a shadowy figure named Losado (Jeroen Krabbe). To bring him out in the open, Eddie abducts Michel, knowing the consequences could be fatal.

Showing as part of War Stories Season on the 19th prepare to meet THE INGLORIOUS BASTARDS! Rebel AAC pilot Bob Yeager (Bo Svenson) and surly private Fred Canfield (Fred Williamson) are among a dozen soldiers on their way to face court-martials. But when German aircraft strafe their truck the pack of ex-crooks, loafers and misfits decide to fight their way to freedom in Switzerland – stealing a Nazi V2 rocket warhead en route. Also as part of the season don’t miss COMPANY OF HEROES on the 24th. During the last major German offensive of World War II, a company of American soldiers is lost behind enemy lines during the Battle of the Bulge, and they make a horrific discovery – Hitler has a super bomb in development. Faced with impossible odds, the company and an escaping POW go on a daring raid into the heart of Nazi Germany in pursuit of the scientist in charge of a Hitler’s weapons programme.

Our final channel premiere is on the 29th and stars Hollywood’s hottest star Pedro Pascal, PROSPECT . A teenage girl and her father travel to a remote alien moon, aiming to strike it rich. They’ve secured a contract to harvest elusive gems hidden in the depths of the moon’s toxic forest. But there are others roving the wilderness and the job quickly devolves into a fight to survive. Also stars Sophie Thatcher and Jay Duplass.

December 19, 2023December 19, 2023

LEGEND announces ten channel premieres for January

The new year on LEGEND kicks off in action-packed style with ten Channel premieres including Hal Ashby’s electrifying murder thriller 8 MILLION WAYS TO DIE, starring Jeff Bridges and Rosanna Arquette, the mystery serial-killer thriller STRIKING DISTANCE, starring Bruce Willis, hard-hitting historical epic ROBERT THE BRUCE, brutal crime drama KILLERMAN, and Rutger Hauer stars as a blind, sword-swinging Vietnam vet in Philip Noyce’s BLIND FURY, a US adaptation of Japan’s popular Zato-ichi films.

Other channel premieres include Aussie sci-fi mend-bender PREDESTINATION, starring Ethan Hawke, slick, gun-toting neo-noir thriller. HITMAN REDEMPTION, starring Ron Perlman, ASSASSINATION GAMES, in which Jean-Claude Van Damme and Scott Adkins play deadly assassins and the classic 1964 epic ZULU, staring Stanley Baxter and Michael Caine.

This month’s THE VINTAGE VAULT strand on Sunday nights is headlined by the Channel premiere of supernatural horror HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, starring Vincent Price. Other genre gems include DRACULA (1958), THE MUMMY (1959), THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and CIRCUS OF HORRORS.

<>Plus, prime-time highlights on LEGEND XTRA, include Paul Hyett’s flesh-biting HOWL, Sci-Fi tech terror KILL COMMAND, cosmic chiller STRANGE INVADERS, serial-killer thriller DEADLY FORCE, classy vampire road movie STAKE LAND, Walter Hill’s car-chase classic THE DRIVER, the ever-haunting PARANORMAL ACTIVITY and intense thriller STANDOFF. STANDOFF.

Here’s all he info you need:

Let’s start on the 4th and ROBERT THE BRUCE. Robert the Bruce (Angus MacFadyen) crowns himself King and takes the ambition of Scotland’s freedom as his own. But he cannot overcome England’s power: defeated again and again, his army is scattered, and Scotland’s nobility abandons him. But his determination to do what is right, regardless of the cost, reinvigorates his passion to rise again. It’s not revenge he desires. It’s freedom. We’re back up to date on the 6th with STRIKING DISTANCE. Convinced that a newly active serial killer is the same gunman who murdered his father, disgraced cop Tom Hardy (Bruce Willis) is working outside of his jurisdiction to catch the murderer. At odds with his new partner (Sarah Jessica Parker), he goes around the system, as he races the clock to find the real killer before the wrong man is executed for the crime.

Sci-Fi thrills on the 11th in PREDESTINATION . A Temporal Agent (Ethan Hawke) is sent on an intricate series of time-travel journeys designed to ensure the continuation of his law enforcement career for all eternity. Now, on his final assignment, the Agent must pursue the one criminal that has eluded him throughout time. Hard hitting crime caper 8 MILLION WAYS TO DIE on the 13th. Matt Scudder (Bridges) is an ex-cop with a bad drinking problem who freelances on jobs other cops won’t touch. When he accepts a fat fee to help a sex worker get free of her pimp, Scudder lands in the middle of a savage murder that hits too close to home, especially when he meets the enigmatic Sarah (Rosanna Arquette).

A must see date for your diaries is on the 17th, the star-studded epic ZULU . Now rightly regarded a classic, made 50 years ago, this is the true story of the defence of a missionary station and hospital called Rorke’s Drift, where 139 soldiers of the South Wales Border regiment held off 4,000 Zulu warriors during the Zulu War of 1879. Stars Stanley Baker and Michael Caine. More contemporary drama on the 18th HITMAN REDEMPTION. Asher (Ron Perlman), a former Mossad agent turned gun for hire, lives an austere life in Brooklyn. Approaching the end of his career, he breaks the oath he took as a young man when he meets Sophie (Famke Janssen) on a hit gone wrong. In order to have love in his life before it’s too late, he must kill the man he was for a chance at becoming the man he wants to be.

A VHS rental classic on the 20th, BLIND FURY. The kid is a brat, and the bus ride from Miami to Reno is long, but Nick Parker (Rutger Hauer) promised the boy’s dying mom that he’d deliver the child to his father (Terry O’Quinn). She was killed by gangsters, and if not for Nick, they’d have the kid, too. Now the two are on the run, and thugs are waiting for them around every corner. Showing as part of The Vintage Vault, HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL on the 20th concerns eccentric millionaire Steven Price (Vincent Price) who offers his party guests $1 million if they stay the night in a mansion that was once an insane asylum. Not knowing Price has rigged the house with spooky contraptions, the guests think they’ll make some easy money and leave unscathed in the morning. But, along with Price’s bogus scares, a very sinister — and real — spirit lurks in the house.

KILLERMAN on the 25th is all about NYC money launderer Moe Diamond (Liam Hemsworth) who wakes up from a car crash, he’s left with no memory, millions in stolen cash, and an insane crew of dirty cops hunting him down. With a stranger (Emory Cohen) who says he’s his best friend and a fiancee he doesn’t remember, Moe must race against the clock to discover his own identity and escape his past, before it destroys any chance at a future. Last movie to check out is on the 27th, ASSASSINATION GAMES. Vincent Brazil (Jean-Claude Van Damme) and Roland Flint (Scott Adkins) are elite assassins – but unknown to each other. While Conway is a master sharpshooter, Chase is equally skilled with a knife. The two rival assassins form an uneasy alliance to take down the head of a drug cartel, which is backed by the DEA.

November 23, 2023December 4, 2023

LEGEND unwraps a seasonal tsunami of action and suspense this December

Strap yourself in for a seasonal tsunami of action and suspense this December as LEGEND unwraps a six-pack of Channel premieres including ESCAPE PLAN 2, the second instalment of the electrifying franchise, with Sylvester Stallone and Dave Bautista once again starring. There’s also a first showing for MAN DOWN, with Shia LaBeouf and Gary Oldman headlining this gripping, post-apocalyptic thriller.

Other channel premieres include gruelling crime thriller SOUTHERN FURY, starring Nicolas Cage, siege drama ROGUE HOSTAGE with Tyrese Gibson and John Malkovich, cult Western THE SPOILERS, starring screen legends John Wayne and Marlene Dietrich and BONE TOMAHAWK, in which Kurt Russell stars as a vengeful gunslinger in a gritty, action-packed thriller chronicling a terrifying rescue mission in the Old West.

This month’s ever popular THE VINTAGE VAULT strand on Sunday nights continues with classic tales of terror and torment,

including THE GHOUL (1933), SON OF FRANKENSTEIN, TARANTULA and THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN, and one of the channel’s favourite cult series continues as THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN reaches its conclusion with season 6.

Plus, welcome to LEGEND XTRA, a brand-new channel that brings viewers a thrilling mix of genre cinema, series and all-time favourites.

Launched on November 22nd, primetime highlights for December include David Robert Mitchell’s creepy break-out hit IT FOLLOWS, sci-fi fantasy LAWNMOWER MAN 2: BEYOND CYBERSPACE and British espionage thriller THE INTERNECINE PROJECT, starring James Coburn.

Then there is slick revenge Western HANNIE CAULDER, apocalyptic horror HOSTILE, the murderous, Halloween-themed FRIGHT FEST, Ralph Nelson’s brutal Western SOLDIER BLUE, psychological thriller THE RESIDENT, starring Hilary Swank and THE HOUSE THAT DRIPPED BLOOD, a superior anthology series starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Denholm Elliott, Ingrid Pitt and Jon Pertwee.

On the 25th of December, viewers are treated to Johnny Kevorkian’s Christmas Day-set mind-bending body horror AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS, which stars David Bradley, Holly Weston and Sam Gittens.

Here’s a list of Legend premieres in transmission order:

We kick off on the 2nd with the channel premiere of SOUTHERN FURY. When a ruthless crime boss (Nicolas Cage) kidnaps his mobster brother, JP (Adrian Grenier) must go against the odds, out-ranked and out-gunned to save his brother’s life. With his brother’s old detective pal Sal (John Cusack) by his side, they now face an army of relentless war-thirsty gangsters. From Wednesday 6th THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN: SEASON 6 comes to Legend. This series ranks as a cultural touchstone and one of the greatest superhero TV events of all-time. Guest stars included Farrah Fawcett, Lindsay Wagner, and Louis Gossett, Jr. This Emmy-nominated series was one of the highest rated programs of the 1970s. Back to the movies and on the 9th we have a ROGUE HOSTAGE. An ex-military operative (Tyrese Gibson), now working as a child protective services officer, must save an immigrant child from a dangerous criminal who has trapped them, and other hostages, in a super store owned by his stepfather (John Malkovich).

MAN DOWN on the 16th is an emotional take on the tragedy of war. Homebound from Afghanistan, Gabriel Drummer, a hard-nosed US marine, (played by Shia LeBeouf), returns to his hometown and is devastated to find it in ruins and his wife and son missing. Also stars Gary Oldman. We jump to the 23rd with an action-packed thriller, ESCAPE PLAN 2 . Years after Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) fought his way out of an escape-proof prison, he’s organised a new top-notch, for-hire security force that includes some of the best in the business. But when one of his team goes missing, Ray ventures back into the secret lock-up.

To help you after your Christmas we have just the thing on the 17th, THE SPOILERS . Prospector Roy Glennister (John Wayne) is continually persecuted by Alexander McNamara, who has the law on his side, until the two decide to settle their dispute man-to-man. Screen legend Marlena Dietrich plays saloon-hall gal Cherry Mallote, who becomes the romantic bone of contention between Glennister and McNamara. Our final channel premiere of 2023 is one of the most acclaimed movies of the last few decades, BONE TOMAHAWK is on the 30th. When a group of cannibal savages kidnaps settlers from the small town of Bright Hope, an unlikely team of gunslingers, led by Sheriff Franklin Hunt (Kurt Russell), sets out to bring them home. But their enemy is more ruthless than anyone could have imagined, putting their mission – and survival itself – in serious jeopardy.

October 24, 2023December 5, 2023

LEGEND reveals twelve turbo-charged premieres for November, including an All-Out Action Season

Get ready to kick, punch and shoot your way through a star-studded season of explosive action premieres on LEGEND this November, including the UK TV premieres of James Cullen Bressack’s tense, against-the-clock thriller HOT SEAT, starring Kevin Dillon and Mel Gibson, and his dazzling action cyber-thriller FORTRESS, starring Bruce Willis.

From Monday 13th – Saturday 20th November there’s an All-Out Action Season, which includes the channel premieres of Walter Hill’s ultra-violent TREPASS, starring Bill Paxton, and John Woo’s deadly HARD TARGET, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. Other titles in the season include hard-boiled thriller BOILING POINT (1993), starring Dennis Hopper, Wesley Snipes and Viggo Mortensen.

Other premieres include high-octane thriller THE HUNTER’S PRAYER, James Deardon’s murderous A KISS BEFORE DYING, Bruce Willis crime thriller MARAUDERS, grizzled wilderness drama BLOOD AND MONEY, Nic Cage crime caper THE TRUST, superhero action fantasy BARB WIRE, starring Pamela Anderson and SNEAKERS, Phil Aidan Robinson’s neat exploration of cybercrime, starring Robert Redford and River Phoenix.

Here’s everything you need to know:

Let’s start on the 4th with a channel premiere, THE HUNTER’S PRAYER. Lucas (Sam Worthington), a solitary assassin is hired to kill a young woman. When he can’t bring himself to pull the trigger, the plan falls apart, setting in motion a twisted game of cat and mouse. A gripping race against time, co-starring Martin Compston and from the director of Terminator 3. We have a UK TV premiere on the 9th, we invite you to take the HOT SEAT. Mel Gibson stars as Wallace Reed, a veteran bomb squad officer, racing to save Orlando Friar (Kevin Dillon), an IT technician taken hostage by a faceless terrorist mastermind. Orlando must empty millions of dollars from Wall Street bank accounts or else the bomb installed on his chair will detonate, vaporising his entire building. It’s a race against the clock!

Moving onto the 10th for a 90s classic, A KISS BEFORE DYING. Jonathan Corliss (Matt Dillon) will do anything for tycoon Thor Carlsson’s (Max Von Sydow) money and power. But when he gets one of Carlsson’s daughter’s inconveniently pregnant he decides to kill her and woo her twin sister! Diane Ladd plays Dillon’s mother in this chilling, dark story of greed and murder. Bruce Willis is back on Legend on the 11th, MARAUDERS. While investigating a brutal robbery-homicide at a bank, a team of FBI agents (Christopher Meloni, Dave Bautista and Adrian Grenier) begins to unravel a sinister conspiracy involving the bank’s powerful owner (Willis). The action-packed crime thriller is directed by Steven C. Miller from a script by Michael Cody and Chris Sivertson.

BLOOD AND MONEY on the 16th combines edge-of-your-seat thrills, suspense and breath-taking cinematography, as acting legend Tom Berenger stars as a retired veteran who, whilst hunting in the snowy outback of Northern Maine, discovers a dead body and a bag full of cash. Violence quickly escalates when a group of criminals in search of the loot turn the hunter in to the hunted. Nicolas Cage and Elijah Wood team star as Jim and David, a cop team, who begin an off-the-books investigation into a bailed heroin dealer in THE TRUST on the 17th. When they discover the dealer’s underground safe, they hatch a plan to break into it for their own gains. But by the time they realise it is a bad idea, it is too late to turn back.

More A-list stars on the 18th in the acclaimed thriller SNEAKERS. Computer expert Martin Bishop (Robert Redford) heads a team of renegade hackers, including a former CIA agent (Sidney Poitier), a gadgets wizard (Dan Aykroyd) and a young genius (River Phoenix). But Bishop’s past comes back to haunt him when government agents blackmail the team into carrying out a dangerous, covert operation. TRESPASS on the 20th concerns two Arkansas firemen get wind that ancient treasure is buried in an abandoned factory, unaware that the structure has become headquarters for a gang of drug dealers. Directed in a ferocious cat-and-mouse style by Walter Hill, Bill Paxton and hip-hop icons Ice Cube and Ice-T battle it out to the finish. Pamela Anderson stars as BARB WIRE on the 24th, the future’s most feared bounty hunter. When trouble comes into town in the form of a former boyfriend, Barb Wire must decide if she can trust a man who once double-crossed her. Featuring songs from rockers Tommy Lee and Michael Hutchence.

The line between the hunted and the hunter becomes blurred in HARD TARGET on 25th. when one man fights a group that hunts other men for sport. Action star Jean Claude Van Damme headlines this action thriller from celebrated Hong Kong filmmaker John Woo. Also stars Lance Henriksen and Wilford Brimley. A UK TV premier on the 30th rounds the month off, FORTRESS. Murray Robert (Bruce Willis) is a retired CIA agent living at a secret resort. When his estranged son visits, he is followed by Robert’s old nemesis, Balzary. Under attack, they retreat to a high-tech bunker. But is it powerful enough to match Balzary’s bloodthirsty revenge? Also stars Jesse Metcalfe and Chad Michael.

September 24, 2023December 5, 2023

LEGEND has 11 premieres for you this October!

Watch out for plenty of star-studied thrills and spills on LEGEND, as the UK’s most entertaining channel for action, suspense and Sci-Fi presents eleven premieres for October, including the UK TV premiere of ANTI-LIFE, an edge-of-your-seat sci-fi thriller with an (inter)stellar cast including Bruce Willis and John Suits. There also a welcome channel premiere for THE GUEST, a brilliant homage to 1980s action flicks and slasher horror, which showcases ex- Downtown Abbey actor Dan Stevens in an inspired star-making turn.

Other channel firsts include high-octane crime thriller DOG EAT DOG, starring Nicolas Cage and Willem Dafoe, American road comedy film MIDNIGHT RUN, starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin, THE QUEST a martial arts thriller directed by Jean-Claude Van Damme in his directorial debut and the controversial drama SLEEPERS, starring Kevin Bacon, Dustin Hoffman, Brad Pitt, Robert DeNiro and Minnie Driver.

Plus, there’s British mystery thriller UNDER SUSPICION starring Liam Neeson, action adventure THE RIVER WILD, starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon and Van Damme and Lundgren return for a sixth instalment of UNIVERSAL SOLDIER: DAY OF RECKONING.

This month’s ever-popular THE VINTAGE VAULT strand on Sunday night double-bills continues its celebration of great horror classics from the Sixties and seventies including DRACULA: PRINCE OF DARKNESS, FRANKENSTEIN CREATED WOMAN, THE DEVIL RIDES OUT, THE SORCERERS, TWINS OF EVIL, SCARS OF DRACULA and LUST FOR A VAMPIRE.

Here’s everything you need to know:

Let’s start on the 5th with the channel premiere of UNDER SUSPICION. Tony Aaron (Liam Neeson) is a disgraced ex-policeman scraping a living as a private detective. When a supposedly routine case goes wrong and leads to the murder of a client and Aaron’s own wife, he is under suspicion of murder. His enquiries lead him to the murdered client’s mistress, the mysterious Angeline (Laura San Giacomo), who stood to benefit heavily. Two legends team-up on Saturday the 7th, MIDNIGHT RUN. When bounty hunter Jack Walsh (Robert DeNiro) is assigned with finding bail jumper Jon Mardukas (Charles Grodin), he has no idea the Mob and the FBI have the same idea Martin Brest directs this smart and funny ‘Odd Couple’ movie.

If its high-octane action then THE QUEST on the 12th is for you. Acclaimed action superstar Jean-Claude Van Damme directs and stars as Chris, a street criminal who has always lived his life in search of new adventures. But his skill will be put to the test when he enters a tournament of the world’s best fighters. Van Dammer’s directorial debut also stars Roger Moore. The we battle the elements on the 14th in THE RIVER WILD. Meryl Streep delivers a tour de force performance as a wife and mother whose family river rafting trip is hijacked by murderous thieves who desire to use her experience as a river guide to get them through a perilous stretch of water known as the Gauntlet. Directed by Curtis Hanson and co-stars Kevin Bacon as the ruthless criminal who threatens their lives.

Based on true events and directed by visionary filmmaker Paul Schrader DOG EAT DOG on the 17th, is a breathtaking crime thriller starring Nicolas Cage and Willem Dafoe, who, fresh out of prison, are trying to adapt themselves to civilian life. But then they are offered a job by an eccentric mob boss with a payoff too good to turn down. Set in the near future, ANTI-LIFE on the 25th focuses on a spaceship with survivors fleeing a devastating plague on planet Earth. But the ship has a stowaway: a shape-shifting alien whose goal is to kill. Clay (Bruce Willis) and his team of mechanics are picked to maintain the interstellar ark but now they must outwrite and destroy a malevolent cosmic terror.

Back down to Earth on the 27th for UNIVERSAL SOLDIER: REGENERATION. When a terrorist sect uses a new destructive model from the “Universal Soldier” line of humanlike machines, to seize the atomic reactor at Chernobyl, Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme), is reactivated to save the planet from nuclear Armageddon. Unfortunately, Deveraux will also have to contend with his nemesis, Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren). A-list drama on the 28th in acclaimed 90s thriller, SLEEPERS. Four boys from Hell’s Kitchen enter a reformatory where a cruel guard (Kevin Bacon) abuses them. Years later, two of them avenge their tormenter and stand trial, defended by a lawyer (Dustin Hoffman) and aided by their scheming cohort (Brad Pitt) and other friends from the ‘hood (Robert DeNiro, Minnie Driver), who face the moral dilemma of justice vs. loyalty.

The big news this month is waiting for you on the 31st, THE GUEST. A brilliant homage to 1980s action flicks and slasher horror given a sharp twist by YOU’RE NEXT director Adam Wingard, it showcases ex- Downtown Abbey actor Dan Stevens in an inspired star-making turn. He plays David, a soldier arriving on the bereaved Peterson family’s doorstep, claiming to be the best friend of their son who died in action. Inviting him to stay, at first the charming veteran seems the perfect guest, but then the random killing starts. What’s going on and can the family stop the cold-blooded lethal weapon in their home committing even worse atrocities?