Greg Nicotero Is Working On A Film About The Making Of Night Of The Living Dead

If there's one thing Hollywood loves it's movies about the making of movies. Film production is a crazy, hectic, inspiring, frustrating, and sometimes magical experience, which of course translates well into fictionalized drama — and that's under the best of circumstances. The scrappy, no-budget, a**holes-and-elbow-grease type of production pops even better on screen. Look no further than "Ed Wood" or "The Disaster Artist" or "Dolemite Is My Name" for examples of that.

What those films have in common, however, is that the amateur filmmaker at the center of each succeeded in making what could best be described as "cult classics," or one of my least favorite labels, "so bad it's good"-type films. If you're going to do a making of a film like "Night of the Living Dead" ... well, that's a different beast. "Night of the Living Dead" is one of the most influential movies ever made. Not just for genre, but for independent cinema on the whole, and the result is a masterpiece, not merely a goofy fun time like "The Room" or "Plan 9 From Outer Space." 

If there's anyone that could do justice to a movie about the making of "Night of the Living Dead," and give director George A. Romero the respect he deserves, it's Greg Nicotero. First known as the "N" of KNB FX, Nicotero is a goremeister supreme who has become a talented director in his own right, having directed a whopping 39 episodes of "The Walking Dead," a show that owes more than a little to Romero's game-changing 1968 zombie film.

Deadline reports that Nicotero is teaming up with producer Jimmy Miller to bring this making-of story to life. Nicotero wasn't just a fan of Romero and his work, he actively took part in making it, cutting his teeth as a young practical gore guy with effects legend Tom Savini and even appearing on-screen in "Day of the Dead." 

Over the years, Nicotero was always a cheerleader for Romero, making sure the film and TV world recognized his importance and contributed effects work to many of his late-career projects, including "Land of the Dead." 

So, he does feel like the right choice to honor the legend while also keeping things real. Romero and his crew were very inexperienced, having only really made industrial films in Pittsburgh before they set out to make a little horror picture for about $100K. The end result isn't something to laugh at, as in "Ed Wood", but that doesn't mean there isn't something inherently funny about a rag-tag group of penny pinchers, stealing shots at locations they weren't permitted to use and cutting every corner to get the footage they needed in the can.

This could be a good one.