World War Z Forum

While the world is, understandably, weary of zombified apocalypses appearing across various entertainment mediums after the deluge of zombie everything pop culture has been inundated with over the last several years, one of the few remaining projects of interest that has yet to unleash walking, fetid corpses on the highly suspecting public is Paramount's adaptation of World War Z, the Max Brooks-written "oral history" of a future zombie war. Brad Pitt's production company has been developing the project for some time, and Pitt himself was set to star, with Quantum of Solace director Marc Forster helming the project. Now, that may all have been for naught.
 
According to Vulture, Paramount is seeking additional funding for the movie, and if it can't find it, it may just put a shotgun barrel to the cranium of the whole project. However, fear not zombie enthusiasts, as there still may be a chance. 
 
You may have heard from various sources about how the son and daughter of Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, David and Megan, are taking an active interest in funding films of their particular fancy. Megan has taken the more indie route, coming to the possible rescue of such films as the latest from The Proposition and The Road director John Hillcoat, and P.T. Anderson's Scientology movie, The Master. David has taken a bigger-budget road, funding the Coens' True Grit, the next Mission: Impossible movie, and now, he may sink some funding into World War Z. If he doesn't? Well, they could always take a cue from the Robocop Statue movement and start up a Kickstarter campaign!
 
One other tidbit to come from all this is the fact that Forster has agreed to a PG-13 rating for the film, as to avoid any of the issues Guillermo Del Toro just recently ran into trying to get his At the Mountains of Madness adaptation off the ground. PG-13 zombies? How do you even do that? The Walking Dead couldn't even get away with that, and that's on television! That thing that kids watch!

PG-13 zombies sucks :(  Kinda disappointed.

Hooray for rich people!! (for once)

PG-13? Count me out, man :/

i think this is awesome.  
 
and i am legend made a lot of money for a pg-13 zombie film

R rating or GTFO.

Doesn't Brad Pitt have 100 million lying around? I'm sure he'll make it all back.

How the hell do you make a PG-13 zombie movie? Fuck Hollywood.

They might as well just release it on Blu-Ray or DVD at this point. Films stuck in development hell this long normally come out really bad.

At this point it would be best for everyone involved if the project was just scrapped.  No one is going to go see a PG-13 zombie movie, and no studio is going to put up the money to make this movie if it has in R rating.

Zombies suck, so I don't care much. I will however say that, if Pitt digs it so much, why can't he pump some of his money into it and work for scale? He's BRAD EFFIN' PITT. He can make it up in a heartbeat, signing on for Ocean's 14 or something next year. And if he can't, who cares - he's MARRIED TO ANGELINA JOLIE. 
And secondly, stop asking stupid questions about how you can do a PG13 movie like this. I HATE how Internet geeks make a big sh** about PG-13 movies. A PG-13 in 2011 is easily an R from 2003. The MPAA is quickly getting de-sensitized to stuff that used to be "shocking". All this means is less f-bombs and titties. It'll still be horrendously violent. Good for Marc Forster.

A watered down PG-13 zombie flick? No, thanks.

You are fucking kidding me, right? Right? The whole gorram point of WWZ was how gritty and violent an actual zombie war would be!

@vinsanityv22 said:

"All this means is less f-bombs and titties. "

See, that is exactly the problem.

Well, if they avoid any outright decapitations and gratuitous zombie brain eating in the violence they might be able to make a PG-13 rated movie that still conveys the violence of the book. In the end the book was just about what would probably go down and not about the actual violence and gore. Just like The Walking Dead after a point the zombies are kind of a part of the landscape.
 
I will say that it's disappointing how Hollywood seems to be abandoning actual horror movies in favor of the watered down Twilight versions. However, that's where the money is coming from so you can't really blame them. I guess I blame society.

@Milkman said:

" How the hell do you make a PG-13 zombie movie? Fuck Hollywood. "

Same. Here.

How the hell do you do zombies in PG? Zombies by their very nature are blood violent creature. Any time I've seen toned down zombies on TV or movies (episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer come to mind) they have sucked donkey balls. Zombies loose their disturbing edge if they arn't violently ripping people apart. 

I don't get it.  Why even bother getting the rights to a book like World War Z if that's what you're going to do to it?  Fucking slack-jawed pussies up in Hollywood.
 
Of course I understand why, though - a built up brand name to easily exploit nerd fanbase yup yup... fuck all you execs.

PG-13?!  No fucking thank you.

And yet, ANOTHER example of the rating system infantilizing movies, and by extension, audiences.