There are some films that, though they get whacked on the head with a shovel several times during complicated development processes, just won’t stay in the grave. One of the more resilient is Pride And Prejudice And Zombies**, which is showing signs of life again, casting Lily James, Sam Riley and Bella Heathcote in the lead roles.
According to Deadline, it really will be made this time – pardon us while we reserve belief until we see it – with Charlie St. Cloud’s Burr Steers directing from a script he’s re-written based on an earlier draft by David O. Russell.
In case you’ve forgotten the basics, the film will adapt Seth Grahame-Smith’s book, which mashes up Jane Austen’s classic of manners and moods with zombie action. James will play heroine Elizabeth Bennett, who must split her time between the romantic attentions and grumpy boorishness of Mr. Darcy (Riley) and fighting off legions of the “sorry stricken” AKA the undead. Heathcote, meanwhile, will be one of the Bennett sisters, while Jack Huston is also in talks to join the film.
This is one that has been through so many hands it’s practically a Frankenstein’s monster of a project by now: Russell, Mike White and Craig Gillespie have all been touted as directors and all fiddled with the script, which has also seen work from Jane Espenson among others. Back when it was first announced, Natalie Portman was attached to the lead role (she remains as a producer), while Emma Stone passed on it back in 2011 and Lily Collins was considered.
The clamour for all things Seth Grahame-Smith has definitely cooled in the wake of **Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter **and Dark Shadows, but this is one film that refuses to die. Steers is reportedly preparing to roll cameras in September.