The fevered excitement of a potential zombie apocalypse is a perfect mining ground for an array of entertainment arenas. From TV shows, video games and movies, there’s never been a better time to pronounce your love of those flesh-gobbling undead shufflers than turning to a screen near you. While AMC’s The Walking Dead has commandeered the small screen for several years now, Legendary are hoping to take a swipe at the zombie flagship with their effort, Dead Rising: Watchtower.
Zach Lipovsky’s live-action adaptation showcases its roots in this first full-length trailer, which presents a mix of violent splatter-movie motifs and tongue-in-cheek comedy. In this case, its loyalty isn’t to a novel or comic book, but to the best-selling video game series which has so far shifted over 7.6 million units worldwide.
Starring Jesse Metcalf, Dennis Haysbert and Virginia Madsen, Dead Rising: Watchtower explores familiar territory to most zombie properties; the aftermath of a virulent outbreak sees a clutch of survivors hunting down a cure while dodging the undead.
The key element to this small screen iteration is in its format flexibility. In a deal with Sony’s free-to-stream outlet Crackle, Legendary are able to usher the movie-show in front of a huge online audience. It’s highly unlikely it will topple The Walking Dead from its throne… but it might give it a damn good chucklesome run for its money.
Dead Rising: Watchtower will premiere on March 27 via Crackle as a 90 minute movie, continuing in an episodic format afterwards.
After a zombie outbreak, four survivors must evade infection while tracking down the cause of the epidemic.. Over-the-top media coverage adds to the chaos while signs point to a government conspiracy. Starring Jesse Metcalfe (Dallas), Dennis Haysbert (Ted 2), Virginia Madsen (Sideways), Meghan Ory (Once Upon a Time), Keegan Connor Tracy (Once Upon a Time) and Rob Riggle (The Daily Show).
