Shaun of the Dead: Slackers vs. The Apocalypse
Directed by Edgar Wright, 2004 horror comedy film Shaun of the Dead stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as Londoners caught in an apocalyptic zombie uprising who just want to take refuge in a local pub with their loved ones. The screenplay was co-written by Wright and Pegg, who worked together on Britcom Spaced in the 1990s—and bonded over their shared love of zombies in general and Night of the Living Dead legend George A. Romero in particular.
When they decided to collaborate for the big screen, it was natural for them to start with Shaun of the Dead, the title of which is a tribute to Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. Wright and Pegg followed in Romero’s footsteps, using the zombies as a way to satirize the culture of the day.
At a private screening, Romero was so impressed that he endorsed the film (“absolute blast”) and later invited Pegg and Wright to cameo in his 2005 film Land of the Dead. However, he didn’t notice some of the details in Shaun of the Dead that were borrowed directly from his films. For example, when Frost’s character yells into the phone, “We're coming to get you, Barbara,” the line comes directly from his 1968 movie Night of the Living Dead. Romero only found out later during a phone conversation with Edgar Wright.
Horror novelist Stephen King remarked that Shaun of the Dead is “a ‘10’ on the fun meter and destined to be a cult classic.”
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