Uwe Boll directing unofficial House of the Dead movie sequel “23 Years Later: The Castle of the Dead”

Director Uwe Boll has announced a brand-new zombie film titled 23 Years Later: The Castle of the Dead, which he describes as an “unofficial sequel” to his infamous 2003 adaptation of The House of the Dead. Production is scheduled to begin September 5 in Germany, with original House of the Dead actors Jonathan Cherry and Ona Grauer returning for the new film. Despite the connection, the movie is not officially tied to SEGA’s franchise, as Boll reportedly does not own the rights to adapt the series.

The original 2003 film loosely followed a group of college students who arrive on an island for a rave party only to find themselves trapped in the middle of a zombie outbreak. Much of the movie took place inside a rundown mansion as the survivors fought waves of undead attackers. The adaptation became notorious among gamers and movie fans alike for its low-budget effects, awkward action scenes, and bizarre use of actual gameplay footage from the SEGA games. For the new movie, Boll is moving the zombie action from a house to a castle. Plot details are still mostly under wraps, but producer Michael Roesch joked that the team is “upgrading from a house full of zombies to a castle full of zombies.”

While House of the Dead was heavily criticized when it released, the movie still developed a cult following over the years and managed to earn millions through theatrical release, home video, and VOD sales. It also spawned the straight-to-video sequel House of the Dead 2 in 2005.

Interestingly, this announcement comes shortly after news broke that Paul W. S. Anderson — director of the Resident Evil movies — is currently developing an official reboot of The House of the Dead for SEGA. Boll didn’t hold back when reacting to the news, criticizing Anderson’s style and saying he wants his own zombie film to focus on practical gore and old-school horror effects instead of heavy CGI.

As if that wasn’t enough retro gaming movie chaos, Boll also revealed plans to reboot Alone in the Dark, another video game adaptation he originally directed back in 2005. The survival horror franchise is now owned by THQ Nordic.

[Via THR]