After years of false starts and a revolving door of directors/leading ladies, the adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith's PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES seems to finally be going full-steam-ahead.
Cross Creek and Universal have locked their director and primary cast for the film, which will start shooting this September for a probable release sometime in late 2015.
Burr Steers (IGBY GOES DOWN, CHARLIE ST. CLOUD) will helm the film based on a screenplay co-written by this project's one-time director, David O. Russell. Lily James (DOWNTON ABBEY, the upcoming CINDERELLA) will play Elizabeth, Sam Riley (MALEFICENT, ON THE ROAD) will play Mr. Darcy, and Bella Heathcote (DARK SHADOWS, NOT FADE AWAY) will portray Elizabeth's sister, Jane.
I like that they're going the ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER route of casting serious actors in the main roles, and seemingly playing it straight just like Grahame-Smith's novel. That's, frankly, the only way this project would work, but given the failure of VAMPIRE HUNTER, staying true to the source material may not be a sure path to box-office success. Nonetheless, they have some hot, up-and-coming actors lined up here, and Steers has directed coming-of-age films both beloved (IGBY GOES DOWN) and lucrative (17 AGAIN), so maybe this lineup is the safest way to assure the film is deftly handed and has blockbuster potential.
How do fans of the book feel about this director/cast?
-Vincent Kim-Zahedi
”Papa Vinyard”
vincentzahedi@gmail.com
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