Movies
‘Twilight of the Dead’ – George A. Romero’s Planned Zombie Movie Finally Coming to Life
Before he passed away in 2017, horror master George A. Romero had been developing one final zombie movie titled Twilight of the Dead, which has shown brief signs of life here and there over the years. Deadline brings us the latest update, reporting that the film now has “backing from Roundtable Entertainment and a planned late 2023 start date in Puerto Rico.”
“The George A. Romero estate is teaming up with LA-based financier-producer Roundtable,” Deadline reports, with Twilight of the Dead being positioned as the “final installment” in Romero’s ‘Dead’ franchise. The original treatment for the planned project was penned by Romero himself, but Joe Knetter, Robert Lucas, and Paolo Zelati tackled the actual screenplay.
Romero followed seminal zombie film Night of the Living Dead with Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead, Diary of the Dead and Survival of the Dead. The upcoming Twilight of the Dead takes the zombie terror to a fresh location: a tropical island.
Twilight of the Dead is said to “delve into the dark nature of humanity from the perspective of the last humans on earth who are caught between factions of the undead.”
Deadline also notes, “The production team on Twilight of the Dead, which includes the late filmmaker’s last wife and estate manager Suzanne Romero, is in negotiations with a director, and was in talks with cast before the SAG-AFTRA strike hit. They are applying for an interim agreement.”
Producers include Suzanne Romero, John Baldecchi, Sarah Donnelly, Paolo Zelati and Ardvella Entertainment’s Stephanie Caleb, with executive producers set as Dominic Ianno, Alex Dundas, Jason Resnick, Chris Roe, and Luis Riefkohl.
Suzanne Romero said in a statement, “I’m delighted to be joining forces with Roundtable to bring the eerie evolution of Romero’s universe to the screen. Roundtable impressed me with their long-term and deep love of George’s work. I believe they have the vision to produce the best version of this movie that honors the Romero legacy. I can’t wait to start filming!”
Roundtable’s Head of Scripted John Baldecchi adds, “We’re thrilled to be working alongside Suzanne, Paolo, and Stephanie to bring the final instalment of this epic series. It is the perfect ending to one of the greatest horror legacies of all time, with a powerful and timely message about how humanity is the cause of its own destruction, over and over and over again. There is a lot of excitement in the creative community to be involved and we’ll be making decisions on that shortly”.
Big Daddy (Eugene Clark) in ‘Land of the Dead’ (2005)
In case you haven’t noticed, the public domain status of beloved icons like Winnie the Pooh, Cinderella and Mickey Mouse has been wreaking havoc on the horror genre in the past couple years, with filmmakers itching to get their hands on the characters and put them into twisted situations. In the wake of two Winnie the Pooh slashers, well, Pooh is about to battle Mickey.
It’s not from the same team behind the Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey films, to be clear, but Deadline reports that Glenn Douglas Packard (Pitchfork) will direct the horror movie Mickey vs. Winnie for Untouchables Entertainment and the website iHorror.
Deadline details, “The film follows two convicts in the 1920s who escape into a cursed forest only to be dragged and consumed into the depths of the dark forest’s muddy heart.
“A century later, a group of thrill-seeking friends unknowingly venture into the same woods. Their Airbnb getaway takes a horrifying turn when the convicts mutate into twisted versions of childhood icons Mickey Mouse & Winnie-The-Pooh, and emerge to terrorize them. A night of violence and gore erupts, as the group of friends battle against their now monstrous beloved childhood characters and fight to break free from the forest’s grip.
“In a horrific spectacle, Mickey and Winnie clash, painting the woods in a gruesome tableau of blood—a chilling testament to the curse’s insidious power.”
Glenn Douglas Packard wrote the screenplay that he’ll be directing.
“Horror fans call for the thrill of witnessing icons like the new Aliens and Avengers sharing the screen. While licensing nightmares make such crossovers rare, Mickey vs. Winnie serves as our tribute to that thrilling fantasy,” Packard said in a statement this week.
Producer Anthony Pernicka from iHorror previews, “We’re thrilled to unveil this unique take to horror fans. The Mickey Mouse featured in our film is unlike any iteration audiences have encountered before. Our portrayal doesn’t involve characters donning basic masks. Instead, we present deeply transformed, live-action horror renditions of these iconic figures, weaving together elements of innocence and malevolence. After experiencing the intense scenes we’ve crafted, you’ll never look at Mickey the same way again.”
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