MANILA, Philippines – It’s boy scouts vs. the undead in Paramount Pictures’ new horror-comedy Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse.
Directed by Chris Landon (writer of Disturbia), the film follows the story of three scouts and lifelong friends who join forces with one badass cocktail waitress to become the world’s most unlikely team of heroes. When their peaceful town is ravaged by a zombie invasion, they’ll fight for the badge of a lifetime and put their scouting skills to the test to save mankind from the undead.
Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse stars Tye Sheridan, David Koechner, Cloris Leachman, Halston Sage, Logan Miller, Joey Morgan, Sarah Dumont and Patrick Schwarzenegger.
Landon explains what drew him to Scouts Guide and his segue into the horror-comedy genre, “When I read the script for this film, I was instantly struck by the playful, Amblin-esque tone. It felt silly and crazy but in a totally fresh and entertaining way. As a writer and director, I have always used comedy in my work, even in the horror genre. Disturbia had very comedic moments. I love using comedy to disarm an audience and connect them with my characters. I also feel that comedy and horror make strange yet perfect bedfellows. They both rely on the set-up and the pay-off. There’s a rhythm to comedy that is very similar to horror.”
As to what audiences can take away from the film, the director concludes, “I want people to walk into the theater and spend an hour and a half screaming and laughing their heads off. This movie is an amusement park ride. But I think the surprising takeaway for the audience will be their affection and connection to the characters. They’re loveable and very relatable. We all worked hard to make this movie as fun as possible and I hope people enjoy it as much as we did making it.”
(Now showing in theaters nationwide, Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse is distributed by United International Pictures through Columbia Pictures.)