Two notable moviemakers are teaming with AMC for a TV adaptation of the comic book The Walking Dead. Variety reports that the project includes Gale Anne Hurd (producer of The Terminator, Aliens, The Incredible Hulk) among its executive producers, while Frank Darabont is going to write and direct the pilot.
Darabont is best known for the Stephen King adaptations he wrote and directed - The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile and The Mist. His early career also included screenplay work on horror films like A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and The Blob remake. Darabont first worked on developing The Walking Dead a few years ago as an NBC project that never got produced.
aAMC have already made a big impact in scripted television with their acclaimed shows Mad Men and Breaking Bad, and The Walking Dead solidifies they have become a premiere destination for top-tier talent. Variety says it will be "one of the richest development deals ever", as contracts are signed for the project. The comic book, from Robert Kirkman, is a zombie story, where a group of survivors – led by police officer Rick Grimes – search for a safe haven.
AMC's Joel Stillerman tells Variety the series will remain faithful to the comic, saying, "This is not about zombies popping out of closets. This is a story about survival, and the dynamics of what happens when a group is forced to survive under these circumstances. The world is portrayed in a smart, sophisticated way."
Darabont is best known for the Stephen King adaptations he wrote and directed - The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile and The Mist. His early career also included screenplay work on horror films like A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and The Blob remake. Darabont first worked on developing The Walking Dead a few years ago as an NBC project that never got produced.
aAMC have already made a big impact in scripted television with their acclaimed shows Mad Men and Breaking Bad, and The Walking Dead solidifies they have become a premiere destination for top-tier talent. Variety says it will be "one of the richest development deals ever", as contracts are signed for the project. The comic book, from Robert Kirkman, is a zombie story, where a group of survivors – led by police officer Rick Grimes – search for a safe haven.
AMC's Joel Stillerman tells Variety the series will remain faithful to the comic, saying, "This is not about zombies popping out of closets. This is a story about survival, and the dynamics of what happens when a group is forced to survive under these circumstances. The world is portrayed in a smart, sophisticated way."
And then I also remember when I started to think "damn, this would be an awesome show!" not a movie, it would suck as a movie, or even more than one, because this really needs a huuuuge time to develop. Only a series with a couple of seasons will do it justice.
And here we are now. I'm dying to see how this plays out.
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