Portman Tackling "Pride & Prejudice & Zombies"

By our guest blogger, Rob Stammitti

Have you ever thought that zombie movies--or horror movies in general--were getting stale? Well, help is on the way. "Pride & Prejudice & Zombies" is a novel by Seth Grahame-Smith that mixes prose from Jane Austen's "Pride & Prejudice" with his own disturbing and darkly comedic zombie tale, and actress Natalie Portman intends to both produce and star in a feature adaptation of the novel, says MTV.

I think it's a brilliant idea. I haven't had a chance to read Grahame-Smith's novel, but just the idea of a zombie film set in 19th century England sounds absolutely fantastic to me. It's an area completely unexplored in mainstream zombie films so far, and Austen's original text is already so perfect for dramatic interpretation that combining it and typical zombie fiction in a film could be nothing but fascinating.

Also, the book already is so experimental with Austen's work that a script adaptation can be completely free with the material as well. After all, how angry can fans of the original novel get when such a drastic change has already been made? And Portman will certainly make a fine Elizabeth Bennet, maintaining the typical sophistication of the character and adding elements of the femme fatale role.

Also producing are "Donnie Darko" director Richard Kelly, Sean McKittrick, and Ted Hamm.