Ben Wheatley is no stranger to shock and gore (try watching Kill List or In The Earth without wincing), societal satire (High-Rise), genre thrills (Free Fire), and sly humour (basically all of his films – even the bleakest ones). And his next project looks set to combine all of those facets – get ready for Generation Z, a flesh-eating horror-comedy series in which the old are quite literally eating the young. All six episodes of the Channel 4 series are written and directed by Wheatley, taking an initial horror pitch from George Faber and spinning it into a gory tale of generational divide.
For Wheatley, it’s a series set to sit alongside one of his most beloved works – the darkly funny, often shocking, definitively British caravan-dwelling killer romp Sightseers. “I was thinking a lot about my own films, because they tentatively fit together,” he tells Empire on set. “Tonally, [Generation Z] fits within the world of Sightseers. It’s [that] same thing of taking genre situations and putting real people in them.” The inspirations, he says, are not other zombie tales – more “Threads and Scooby-Doo”. And like fellow British takes on the subgenre, he’s twisting the zombie mythology. “They’re not really zombies. It’s like a viral infection,” he teases. “Zombie apocalypses are normally unexplained. This is more science-based.”
In true Wheatley style, Generation Z marks another total pivot from his previous work – he last delivered Jason Statham-starring mega-shark sequel Meg 2: The Trench. “I like that contrast,” he says of the switch-up. “It’s all fun. There’s a weird perception that it’s only good to be going up in budget. But it’s not that — it’s the difference between an acoustic album and a rock album. You take pleasure from both styles.” Get ready to reign in blood.
Read Empire’s full Generation Z set report in the 40 Years Of The Terminator issue – on sale Thursday 26 September. Pre-order a copy online here. Generation Z is coming to Channel 4 next month.