George A. Romero Presents: Road of the Dead


This new chapter is set in a near post-apocalyptic time in which the last survivors of humanity have fled to an island, controlled by a despotic General. To keep his island subjects amused and distracted, he organises drag races with zombies, involving a human as bait at the finishing line. In the backdrop, a genetic scientist is using the contests as a front to develop an antidote that will enable humans and zombies to live together.

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CURRENT STATUS: 
Development Unknown

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PROJECT DETAILS:

It was originally aimed to have this film out around Halloween of 2018, but plans apparently fell through. However, a 3-part comic series titled Road of the Dead: Highway To Hell by New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry (V-Wars) was released later that year and serves as a prequel to this movie. At the moment it's not known what's going on with the project, but with the ongoing pandemic making things harder on filmmakers it's likely shelved for the time being. (8/12/20)

According to director Matt Birman the plan is to "prep the movie in the spring of 2018, shoot next summer, and deliver the film in time for Halloween."

George A. Romero passed away on July 16th due to lung cancer, leaving behind a handful of potential projects in limbo, including this one. However, according to a recent interview with co-writer/director Matt Birman he's determined to get this made, saying: "Road of the Dead now becomes a legacy film. We won’t only be making the film for him, it will also be with him. He will be by my side and in my ear for the rest of my career, I have no doubt." Adding that he intends to "protect and maintain the legacy and integrity of both the artist and the man” and “he was a no-bullshit, super honest, tell-it-like-it-is man and I will always continue in that tradition.” (7/18/17)

George A. Romero had a recent interview where he gave more details on the film, saying: "It’s set in a sanctuary city where this fat cat runs a haven for rich folks, and one of the things that he does is stage drag races to entertain them. There’s a scientist there doing genetic experiments, trying to make the zombies stop eating us, and he has discovered that with a little tampering, they can recall certain memory skills that enable them to drive in these races. So it’s a demolition derby with zombies at the wheels, and of course the shit hits the fan in other ways. It’s really a romp; it’s great fun, with stunts galore." Adding... "This one is really almost a comedy, though it’s got scares and spooky moments and all that. It’s more about suspense than blood. While there is gore, it’s not overt; there are no big, operatic sequences where people get torn apart. There’s slapstick in it, but it’s mostly stunts; it’s quite different. One character dies, for example, in a tragic way, but was once in NASCAR and is able to come back and drive. It’s that kind of looney-tunes." (7/7/17)

George A. Romero co-write the project and will also serve as producer, while co-writer Matt Birman directs.

Birman served as second unit director on all three of Romero's last movies: Land of the Dead, Diary of the Dead and Survival of the Dead and has also worked as a stunt coordinator and stuntman for more than three decades.

This is reportedly a sequel that takes place several years after Land of the Dead.

The film is based on a pitch from Matt Birman roughly 10 years ago. Birman describes the project as "Road Warrior meets Rollerball at a Nascar race, with significant inspiration from Ben-Hur."

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