Paramount is lining up a new thriller, and they want the writer behind the movie that made you realize zombies are way scarier than you had previously imagined. (Cue angry debate over whether fast-moving people infected by a “rage virus” should be considered zombies.) Variety reports that 28 Days Later scribe Alex Garland has been tapped to adapt the screenplay for Annihilation, as well as direct it.
The first book in Jeff VanderMeer’s The Southern Reach trilogy, Annihilation tells the story of a biologist investigating her husband’s disappearance inside an environmental disaster area cordoned off by the government for over 30 years. (Paramount hasn’t said anything about keeping the title, which means that Gone Guy is totally an option.) All three books in the trilogy have been released over the past year, and the studio is clearly hoping to turn it into a franchise.
Though Garland is mostly known as the writer of genre fare like Sunshine, Never Let Me Go, and Dredd, he recently made the jump to directing. His first feature, Ex Machina, is scheduled for release April 10. You can watch the trailer here.