A New Night Of The Living Dead Sequel May Be On The Horizon
In the modern era, zombie media is far from uncommon, no matter the size of the screen you're watching. From cinematic efforts like "Zombieland" and "World War Z" to television endeavors like the highly-successful AMC series "The Walking Dead" and Syfy's "Z Nation," the reanimated dead with a hunger for human flesh have been depicted in a variety of ways in a variety of projects. Of course, without the creation of the late, great George A. Romero's 1968 feature "Night of the Living Dead," the zombie genre certainly wouldn't be where it is today.
To put it mildly, "Night of the Living Dead" was a game-changer. It perfectly blended tried and true horror with relevant societal commentary and made zombies mainstream, all with a small cast and a modest budget. In the years following its premiere, Romero released several sequels of varying quality, with the last arriving in 2009 under the title "Survival of the Dead" — the final feature-length film Romero directed before his death in 2017. Despite his passing, plans were in place for the franchise to continue via "Twilight of the Dead," but the film has yet to materialize (via The Hollywood Reporter).
While it remains to be seen if "Twilight of the Dead" will ever come to fruition, we have learned that another "Night of the Living Dead" continuation is supposedly on its way down the production pipeline.
Director Nikyatu Jusu has signed on to direct the sequel
On October 26, 2022, Deadline reported a bit of news that will surely have fans of "Night of the Living Dead" and its sequels very excited. Village Roadshow Pictures is reportedly collaborating with Christine Romero — George Romero's former wife — Sanibel Films, Origin Story, Vertigo, and Westbrook Studios to resurrect the famous franchise. This new follow-up to the 1968 classic lacks a title, and plot details have yet to come to light, but we do know that Nikyatu Jusu of "Nanny" fame will direct with the scribe of "Shameless," "The Walking Dead," and "Duster," among other titles, LaToya Morgan, set to pen the script.
"The original version of 'Night of the Living Dead' is still so resonant to this day. Every era has the zombie that it needs," Jusu said, with Morgan adding, "I'm beyond thrilled to be playing in the sandbox that George Romero built and ecstatic to raise the stakes and push the envelope with this exciting new story." Christine Romero, who will take part in the project as a creative overseer, also expressed her excitement at the idea of carrying on the legacy of her late husband's life's work. She said in a statement, "George would have been so happy to see this happen," noting that she anticipates fans will like what they see.
It's an exciting time to be a fan of the zombie genre and an even more exciting one if you're a George Romero fan. Hopefully, more information about the Nikyatu Jusu-led "Night of the Living Dead" sequel will reach the public sooner rather than later.