A New ‘House of the Dead’ Movie is In Development from Paul W.S. Anderson; Should We be Excited?
Can Paul W.S. Anderson “improve” on ground already covered by one of cinema’s most notorious video game filmmakers?
Paul W.S. Anderson is returning to the world of video-game-inspired zombie movies! Just before noon on Halloween 2024, Deadline reported that Anderson will write and direct an upcoming movie based on the Sega video game franchise The House of the Dead. This isn’t the first time the filmmaker has been involved in high-profile game adaptation, nor is it the first time The House of the Dead has been depicted in live-action.
It’s safe to say that Paul W.S. Anderson is one of the most prolific filmmakers ever when it comes to video-game-to-movie adaptations. In addition to his extensive involvement in the Resident Evil live-action films, he also directed Mortal Kombat (1995), produced DOA: Dead or Alive (2006), and wrote, directed, and produced Monster Hunter (2020). A sizable portion of his filmography is devoted to video game movies. When thinking of filmmakers who have made a name for themselves with numerous video game adaptations, another person springs to mind: Uwe Boll.
Uwe Boll’s first film adaptation of a video game (as a director and producer) was 2003’s House of the Dead. Call it fate, call it coincidence, call it whatever you want, but two titans of the game-adaptation world are colliding. Sort of. Paul W.S. Anderson is in the process of adapting a game franchise that Uwe Boll already tackled, so when Anderson’s movie is released, two prolific game-film adapters will have interpreted the same source material in their own distinct ways. Is this good news? Should we be looking forward to another attempt at a House of the Dead movie?
I’ve made no secret about my abnormal admiration for House of the Dead (2003). It’s one of my favorite bad movies ever, and I’ve watched it a shocking number of times over the years. I will admit though, after the shootout in the yard about two-thirds of the way through the movie, the “quality” goes into a nosedive. The fun stops, and the last part of the movie is a slog to get through.
As for Paul W.S. Anderson, I haven’t always liked his ideas when it comes to adapting video games into movies. That said, I do enjoy the first Resident Evil from 2002, and I like Mortal Kombat (1995). Also, when looking at his other, non-video-game movies, Event Horizon (1997) is one of my favorite sci-fi horror films ever (though Anderson only directed that, and didn’t write it). But all this is to say that I believe Anderson can make a super-fun House of the Dead movie, and I hope he does.
In the Deadline article, Anderson says his movie will be “a full-on terror ride” that is like “the most extreme haunted house you’ve ever been in.” The way he describes it sounds like it will be about action first, and the story will be a distant second. The story will be based on The House of the Dead III (2002), which is about a woman named Lisa Rogan who is trying to find out what happened to her father after he went missing while raiding a genetic engineering facility.
Frankly, the story is less important to me than the action in this case. I’ve played and enjoyed The House of the Dead games over the years, but I’ve never been invested in the lore like I have with other game series like Resident Evil or Silent Hill. I know there are people out there who do like the story, so I hope the movie does it justice. For me though, I’m just hoping for a fun time with zombies and various other monsters that I recognize from the games. I have faith that Paul W.S. Anderson can make something big, violent, and crowd-pleasing, and that’s all I really expect from The House of the Dead. So yes, I’m excited about this movie, though I’m remaining as cautiously optimistic as possible.
And if he can somehow tie it into Uwe Boll’s House of the Dead movie, I’ll be the happiest guy in the theater on opening day.
You can read more about Paul W.S. Anderson’s The House of the Dead, and see some concept art, in the Deadline article.
