The artist formerly known as Marky Mark as a zombie? It could happen if director John Moore has his wish.
Moore will direct the upcoming “Variants” movie, based on a horror story published by Virgin Comics. “Variants” is the story of a platoon of U.S. Marines stationed in Afghanistan who come across a group of flesh-eating vampire zombies.
And Moore has actor Mark Wahlberg in mind to play the lead role.
“Mark [Wahlberg]. We had a hell of a time on ‘Max Payne.’ I think he’s an actor of unlimited potential and I’d just love to go around with him again,” he said. “[But] we’re not in control of these things — lots of big people with big checkbooks get to do that. If it’s going to happen, then the karma makes it happen.”
Moore says that he feels the timing is perfect for this zombie film, which has a sense of irony and humor to it.
“The world’s pretty serious right now, and there’s an ironic lightness in ‘Virulents,’” Moore explained. “There’s a touch of macabre ridiculousness to it. I think we’ve seen a lot of attempts to make serious movies about serious things, and it strikes me that we might be a little more artful about how we make a point [these days].”
Moore is fast to point out a perfect example of a film that subtly addresses his views on social commentary in film. “I think ‘The Dark Knight,’ for example, is probably the most socially relevant film in the past two, three, four years, despite many attempts to make very serious movies,” he said. “‘Dark Knight’ talks to our decision-making ability in the world, whether or not we can distinguish between good and evil, and it’s done in a way more artful form than ramming something down someone’s throat. Which is why ‘Virulents’ appeals to me.”
There’s no word yet on if Wahlberg is interested in playing a brain eating zombie…
Follow the Zombies!