Latest news with #Ximena
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Phasmophobia' Film In The Works: Blumhouse To Adapt Paranormal Horror Game
Popular paranormal horror game Phasmophobia is getting a film adaptation from Blumhouse. The production company known for its horror films made the announcement at its first-ever The Business of Fear in Hollywood. More from Deadline Blumhouse Announces First Spanish Language Original Film 'No Me Sigas' From Directors Ximena and Eduardo García Lecuona Blumhouse Drops First Poster For 'Five Nights At Freddy's 2' Blumhouse Reveals Trailer And Poster For 'Black Phone 2' Phasmophobia was released in 2020 and developed and published by British indie game studio Kinetic Games. The game has surpassed 23 million in global sales and has become a genre-defining title in multiplayer horror gaming. The game is a horror investigation survival game played from a first-person point of view. The player can work alone or with a group of people to identify the type of ghost haunting a specific location. Blumhouse and Atomic Monster will produce the film in association with Kinetic Games Limited. In July 2024, Blumhouse commissioned a survey to classify 100 prominent horror films from the past 50 years into subgenres. The results identified the paranormal subgenre as one of the 24 thriving subgenres, with other examples including survival, slasher, and psychological thriller, among others. During its first The Business of Fear event today, Blumhouse CEO/Founder Jason Blum and President Abhijay Prakash, Atomic Monster CEO/Founder James Wan and horror analyst/author Stephen Follows spoke about the ways in which horror has grown and expanded in recent years, with subgenres an important way to entertain the diverse tastes of its audience. Blumhouse's latest releases include Drop, The Woman in the Yard, Wolf Man, House of Spoils, Speak No Evil, Afraid, Imaginary, Night Swim, Five Nights at Freddy's, and The Exorcist: Believer. The studio's upcoming releases include M3GAN 2.0 (June 27, 2025), Black Phone 2 (October 17, 2025), and Five Nights at Freddy's 2 (December 5, 2025). Best of Deadline 2025 TV Cancellations: Photo Gallery 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
College student's immigration detention highlights Dreamers' growing deportation risks
A traffic stop made in error upended the life of a 19-year-old woman who was born in Mexico and has lived in Georgia most of her life. It also shows the growing risks undocumented young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, known as Dreamers, face under President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Ximena Arias-Cristobal is opening up about how being wrongly pulled over by police in the city of Dalton last month put her on immigration authorities' radar and made her susceptible to deportation. "There's no way to go back to how my life was before," Arias-Cristobal told NBC News during a virtual conversation with reporters on Tuesday. Arias-Cristobal has lived in the U.S. since she was 4 years old. 'Georgia is my home,' she said. When Dalton police stopped Arias-Cristobal on May 5, they accused her of making an improper turn and driving without a valid driver's license. A week later, all traffic-related charges against her were dropped after dashcam video of the traffic stop showed that the officer meant to stop another vehicle. Still, Arias-Cristobal spent two days in county jail and two and a half weeks at an immigration detention center in rural Georgia. Her case shows what nearly 2.5 million Dreamers living in the U.S. face as the Trump administration steps up the pace of deportations of immigrants who don't have criminal charges or convictions, despite the president's campaign vows to prioritize the deportations of violent criminals. 'Dreamers are under attack,' said Gaby Pacheco, president of an organization helping Dreamers go to college. An athlete and a honor student, Arias-Cristobal attended Dalton public schools her whole life. Arias-Cristobal received a national scholarship from which runs a highly regarded scholarship program for undocumented youth with financial needs. She's pursuing a degree in finance and economics at Dalton State Community College. 'We have thousands of Dreamers apply to like Ximena. The reason why Ximena got this scholarship is because she was one of the best,' Pacheco said, adding that Arias-Cristobal demonstrated to be a good student at school, a member of the running team and active in her church and community. Two weeks ago, Arias-Cristobal was released on the minimal amount of bond possible under the law, $1,500. The Dalton police officer who arrested Arias-Cristobal resigned on May 23, two days after she was released from immigration detention. Arias-Cristobal said she's in the process of obtaining a visa. To ensure nothing jeopardizes her immigration case, her attorney advised her to avoid going out and to stay indoors as much as possible. Despite being back in her home, she said she still feels trapped. 'I am not just an immigrant. I am a human being. I am a Georgian and I am an American without papers,' she said. According to Pacheco, Arias-Cristobal is one of nearly 12,000 scholars who have gone on to pursue college degrees, medical school and even work as nurses, engineers and at Fortune 500 companies. 'In recent months, multiple scholars and alumni have either been arrested, detained and even deported,' Pacheco said. "Dreamers are part of the American community," she said. "If we agree that Dreamers contribute to this country, if we agree they belong, what is stopping us? We need permanent legislative protection for them. We need a path to permanent legal status for them." Polls and surveys have consistently shown that most U.S. adults favor granting permanent legal status and a pathway to citizenship to Dreamers. Trump even told NBC News' 'Meet the Press' in December that he wanted to work with Democrats and Republicans on a plan 'to do something about the Dreamers.' When asked about possible plans for immigration protections for Dreamers, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told NBC News in a statement Wednesday, "The Trump Administration's top priority is deporting criminal illegal aliens from the United States, of which there are many." "President Trump is fulfilling his promise to Make America Safe again, secure our border, and remove criminal illegals,' Jackson said. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to a request for comment. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, is one of the few deportation protections that exist for eligible Dreamers, but it's currently available to about 530,000 people who were granted DACA before 2017, according to an immigration advocacy organization. DACA has been closed for new applicants since legal challenges to end the program began during the first Trump administration, shutting out an estimated 600,000 people like Arias-Cristobal who would have been eligible for it. "Not being able to apply for DACA is something that pains me greatly," Arias-Cristobal said in Spanish. In addition to Arias-Cristobal, other Dreamers have been deported or detained. One of them is Wualner Sauceda, a middle school science teacher in South Florida who was deported to Honduras in February. On Jan. 7, a couple of weeks before Trump took office, Sauceda was detained following a check-in with immigration officials. He showed up hoping to figure out other legal pathways to remain in the country after his asylum application was denied under the Biden administration. Sauceda, 24, came to the United States as a young teen, attended public schools in South Florida and got a scholarship that allowed him to attend Florida International University. Just last week, Marcelo Gomes Da Silva was pulled over in Milford, Massachusetts, while driving his father's car. Immigration authorities made the traffic stop because they were looking for Gomes Da Silva's father but, after learning the 18-year-old was unlawfully present in the U.S., they placed him in an immigration detention center. Gomes Da Silva, who was born in Brazil, had been living in Massachusetts since he was 6 years old, attending public schools in Milford. Community members there described him as an athlete, a musician and an exceptional high school junior with an infectious smile. In a phone call from detention, the teen told his girlfriend, Julianys Rentas Figueroa, that immigration authorities 'put chains around his ankles, on his wrists,' NBC Boston reported. Arias-Cristobal related to the experience. "Being shackled at the wrist, waist and ankles," she said, "is something I'll never forget." "It left a mark on me emotionally and mentally," Arias-Cristobal added. "It's heartbreaking and it's something that changed me forever." As she fights her case, Arias-Cristobal said she hopes to "have a future here in the United States" and "be a voice" for other undocumented people, students and Dreamers. This article was originally published on
NBC News
6 days ago
- General
- NBC News
College student's immigration detention highlights Dreamers' growing deportation risks
A traffic stop made in error upended the life of a 19-year-old woman who was born in Mexico and has lived in Georgia most of her life. It also shows the growing risks undocumented young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, also known as Dreamers, face under President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Ximena Arias-Cristobal is opening up about how being wrongly pulled over by local police in the city of Dalton last month put her on immigration authorities' radar and made her susceptible to deportation. "There's no way to go back to how my life was before," Arias-Cristobal told NBC News during a virtual conversation with reporters on Tuesday. Arias-Cristobal has lived in the U.S. since she was 4 years old. 'Georgia is my home,' she said. When Dalton police stopped Arias-Cristobal on May 5, they accused her of making an improper turn and driving without a valid driver's license. A week later, all traffic-related charges against her were dropped after dashcam video of the traffic stop showed that the officer meant to stop another vehicle. Still, Arias-Cristobal spent two days in county jail and two and a half weeks at an immigration detention center in rural Georgia. Her case shows what nearly 2.5 million Dreamers living in the U.S. face as the Trump administration steps up the pace of deportations of immigrants who don't have criminal charges or convictions, despite the president's campaign vows to prioritize the deportations of violent criminals. 'Dreamers are under attack,' said Gaby Pacheco, president of an organization helping Dreamers go to college. An athlete and a honor student, Arias-Cristobal attended Dalton public schools her whole life. Arias-Cristobal received a national scholarship from which runs a highly regarded scholarship program for undocumented youth with financial needs. She's pursing a degree in finance and economics at Dalton State Community College. 'We have thousands of Dreamers apply to like Ximena. The reason why Ximena got this scholarship is because she was one of the best,' Pacheco said, adding that Arias-Cristobal demonstrated to be a good student at school, part of the running team and an active member of her church and community. Two weeks ago, Arias-Cristobal was released on the minimal amount of bond possible under the law, $1,500. The Dalton police officer who first arrested Arias-Cristobal resigned on May 23, two days after she was released from immigration detention. Arias-Cristobal said she's in the process of obtaining a visa. To ensure nothing jeopardizes her immigration case, her attorney advised her to avoid going out and to stay indoors as much as possible. Despite being back in her home, she said she still feels trapped. 'I am not just an immigrant. I am a human being. I am a Georgian and I am an American without papers,' she said. According to Pacheco, Arias-Cristobal is one of nearly 12,000 scholars who have gone on to pursue college degrees, medical school and even work as nurses, engineers and at Fortune 500 companies. 'In recent months, multiple scholars and alumni have either been arrested, detained, and even deported,' Pacheco said. "Dreamers are part of the American community," she said. "If we agree that Dreamers contribute to this country, if we agree they belong, what is stopping us? We need permanent legislative protection for them. We need a path to permanent legal status for them." Polls and surveys have consistently shown that most U.S. adults favor granting permanent legal status and a pathway to citizenship to Dreamers. Trump even told NBC News' 'Meet the Press' in December that he wanted to work with Democrats and Republicans on a plan 'to do something about the Dreamers.' When asked about possible plans for immigration protections for Dreamers, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told NBC News in a statement Wednesday, "The Trump Administration's top priority is deporting criminal illegal aliens from the United States, of which there are many." "President Trump is fulfilling his promise to Make America Safe again, secure our border, and remove criminal illegals,' Jackson said. NBC News has also contacted the Department of Homeland Security seeking comment. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, is one of the few deportation protections that exist for eligible Dreamers, but it's currently available to about 530,000 people who were granted DACA before 2017, according to an immigration advocacy organization. DACA has been closed for new applicants since legal challenges to end the program began during the first Trump administration, shutting out an estimated 600,000 people like Arias-Cristobal who would have been eligible for it. "Not being able to apply for DACA is something that pains me greatly," Arias-Cristobal said in Spanish. In addition to Arias-Cristobal, other Dreamers have been deported or detained. One of them is Wualner Sauceda, a middle school science teacher in South Florida who was deported to Honduras in February. On Jan. 7, a couple of weeks before Trump took office, Sauceda was detained following a check-in with immigration officials. He showed up hoping to figure out other legal pathways to remain in the country after his asylum application was denied under the Biden administration. Sauceda, 24, came to the United States as a young teen, attended public schools in South Florida and got a scholarship that allowed him to attend Florida International University. Just last week, Marcelo Gomes Da Silva was pulled over while driving his father's car. Immigration authorities made the traffic stop because they were looking for Gomes Da Silva's father but, after learning the 18-year-old was unlawfully present in the U.S., they placed him in an immigration detention center. Gomes Da Silva, who was born in Brazil, had been living in Massachusetts since he was 6 years old, attending public schools in the town of Milford. Community members there described him as an athlete, a musician and an exceptional high school junior with an infectious smile. In a phone call from detention, the teen told his girlfriend, Julianys Rentas Figueroa, that immigration authorities 'put chains around his ankles, on his wrists, ' NBC Boston reported. Arias-Cristobal related to the experience. "Being shackled at the wrist, waist and ankles," she said, "is something I'll never forget." "It left a mark on me emotionally and mentally," Arias-Cristobal added. "It's heartbreaking and it's something that changed me forever." As she continues fighting her case, Arias-Cristobal said she hopes to "have a future here in the United States" and "be a voice" for undocumented people, students and Dreamers.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Yahoo
Georgia college student detained by ICE after being wrongly pulled over is granted bond
A 19-year-old college student in Georgia, who was detained by immigration authorities after police pulled over the wrong car in a traffic stop, was granted bond on Wednesday. Ximena Arias-Cristobal was held in a detention center under the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in western Georgia while her lawyer and family fought for her release. She was detained after she was pulled over by the Dalton Police Department on May 5 and accused of making an improper turn and driving without a proper license. A week later, all charges against her were dropped after the department said police had pulled over the wrong car. But ICE kept Arias-Cristobal in detention because the agency determined she was in the United States illegally. Arias-Cristobal was born in Mexico but has lived in the United States since she was 4 years old. The Dalton State Community College student did not qualify for protections under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) established in 2012 because she was brought to the U.S. after new applications were stopped, following lawsuits by Republican states trying to end the program. She now faces deportation proceedings. On Wednesday, Arias-Cristobal was granted the minimal amount of bond possible under the law, $1,500, her lawyer Dustin Baxter said. The government did not appeal the judge's bond order, according to Baxter. 'The judge had reviewed Ximena's case in detail and determined that Ximena is in fact not a flight risk or a danger to the community in the least,' he said in a statement. 'The family will pay the bond ASAP and Ximena will be home with her family tomorrow afternoon at the latest." Arias-Cristobal was being held at the ICE Stewart Detention Center in rural Lumpkin, Georgia, about three and a half hours from where she lives. Her father, José Arias Tovar, had been held in the same detention center after he was pulled over in a separate traffic stop a couple of weeks earlier. He was released on bond last week and told NBC News knowing he was released while his daughter remained in detention was 'the most difficult situation in my life.' 'I can say, my body walks away, but my heart stays there. It's very sad,' he said in Spanish. Arias Tovar said his daughter is a great person and a 'a strong worker, very good student. I can see a good future for her here in the United States.' 'I know a lot of people think bad things about us because we broke some immigration laws. I understand that. But when we come here, we fall in love. We love this country,' he said. 'We are ready to build America together. We're just looking for one chance to stay here with my family, because we are good workers. We are not criminals.' Ndaihita Cristobal, the mother of Arias-Cristobal, said she hasn't been sleeping well since her husband and daughter were detained by immigration authorities. 'I was crying because in my house I felt a very, very strong loneliness, a sadness,' she told NBC News in Spanish. 'Every morning we would have breakfast together. But she's no longer with me,' she said. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Wednesday that the facts of the case remain unchanged. 'Both father and daughter were in this country illegally,' Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. 'The United States is offering aliens like this father and daughter $1,000 apiece and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.' This article was originally published on
NBC News
21-05-2025
- NBC News
Georgia college student detained by ICE after being wrongly pulled over is granted bond
A 19-year-old college student in Georgia, who was detained by immigration authorities after police pulled over the wrong car in a traffic stop, was granted bond on Wednesday. Ximena Arias-Cristobal was held in a detention center under the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in western Georgia while her lawyer and family fought for her release. She was detained after she was pulled over by the Dalton Police Department on May 5 and accused of making an improper turn and driving without a proper license. A week later, all charges against her were dropped after the department said police had pulled over the wrong car. But ICE kept Arias-Cristobal in detention because the agency determined she was in the United States illegally. Arias-Cristobal was born in Mexico but has lived in the United States since she was 4 years old. The Dalton State Community College student did not qualify for protections under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) established in 2012 because she was brought to the U.S. after new applications were stopped, following lawsuits by Republican states trying to end the program. She now faces deportation proceedings. On Wednesday, Arias-Cristobal was granted the minimal amount of bond possible under the law, $1,500, her lawyer Dustin Baxter said. The government did not appeal the judge's bond order, according to Baxter. 'The judge had reviewed Ximena's case in detail and determined that Ximena is in fact not a flight risk or a danger to the community in the least,' he said in a statement. 'The family will pay the bond ASAP and Ximena will be home with her family tomorrow afternoon at the latest." Arias-Cristobal was being held at the ICE Stewart Detention Center in rural Lumpkin, Georgia, about three and a half hours from where she lives. Her father, José Arias Tovar, had been held in the same detention center after he was pulled over in a separate traffic stop a couple of weeks earlier. He was released on bond last week and told NBC News knowing he was released while his daughter remained in detention was 'the most difficult situation in my life.' 'I can say, my body walks away, but my heart stays there. It's very sad,' he said in Spanish. Arias Tovar said his daughter is a great person and a 'a strong worker, very good student. I can see a good future for her here in the United States.' 'I know a lot of people think bad things about us because we broke some immigration laws. I understand that. But when we come here, we fall in love. We love this country,' he said. 'We are ready to build America together. We're just looking for one chance to stay here with my family, because we are good workers. We are not criminals.' Ndaihita Cristobal, the mother of Arias-Cristobal, said she hasn't been sleeping well since her husband and daughter were detained by immigration authorities. 'I was crying because in my house I felt a very, very strong loneliness, a sadness,' she told NBC News in Spanish. 'Every morning we would have breakfast together. But she's no longer with me,' she said. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Wednesday that the facts of the case remain unchanged. 'Both father and daughter were in this country illegally,' Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. 'The United States is offering aliens like this father and daughter $1,000 apiece and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.'
