STX Entertainment has come aboard to distribute and oversee production on Tencent Pictures and Channing Tatum, Reid Carolin and Peter Kiernan’s Free Association‘s film adaptation of the mega-hit Zombie Brother, which is the top title on Tencent’s digital comics and animation platform.
According to STX, “Since 2011, the digital comic book has garnered more than 17 billion views over 348 episodes, and its animated series has attracted more than 3.7 billion views across its first two seasons. The franchise has also been adapted into a mobile game and a popular stage play. The stage play has had a record-breaking run of sold out shows across the region.”
Tencent was an early investor in STX Entertainment so it makes sense that STX would come aboard to co-produce this picture. Matt Lieberman was hired back in March to script, with Kung Fury helmer David Sandberg attached to direct (according to our sister publication Variety).
Zombie Brother has been described in its casting call as “a genre-bender, big adventure comedy with a splash of sci-fi and a dose of horror, all with the self-referential tones of 21 Jump Street and Deadpool. The film follows a crew of tech-obsessed homebodies who become humanity’s unlikeliest saviors in the wake of a zombie apocalypse.”
STXfilms will distribute the film domestically and Tencent Pictures will distribute in China. Tatum, Carolin, Kiernan and Michael Parets will produce for Free Association, and Edward Cheng, Howard Chen, and Conor Zorn will produce for Tencent Pictures. STXfilms’ Chairman Adam Fogelson and head of production Sam Brown will oversee the film for the studio.
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