Night of the Living Dead: Origins.  That’s a thought that should both astonish and horrify all at the same time.  While there was already one remake, and as far as I’m concerned it’s the gold standard of remakes, I’m not too sure about a new “remake“…especially one that’s billing itself as, get this–an American-style anime.

Like I said, it’s called Night of the Living Dead: Origins, and they’re meaning to have it explore some of the characters’ backstories.  On the one hand, that’s kind of an interesting idea–I like the thought of figuring out everybody’s backstories myself.  Sure, we know the Coopers got to the farmhouse, but do we really know how?  And which version of Cooper will they follow: the jackass from the remake or the helpful one from the original?  I don’t know, and that’s what this movie should help explain.  What about Tommy and Judy Rose?  And what happened to Ben in Evans City?  How did he KNOW it was a “war zone”?  There are some good questions here that a remake could help explore, but I find myself skeptical of Hollywood’s ability to handle the remake.  Especially since they’re handing the remake over to a couple guys that don’t have much of a filmography that I’ve even heard of.  But seeing as how Night of the Living Dead is now public domain, if I remember correctly, it’s not like there’s anything stopping anyone else from doing the job right.

No word on release dates just yet, but hopefully we’ll be hearing more about this in short order.