The Munsters: Rob Zombie Reboot Earns Surprising Rating

Ever since his debut horror film House of 1000 Corpses, filmmaker Rob Zombie has pushed boundaries with the intensity of his efforts, but with his upcoming adaptation The Munsters, he has toned down his sensibilities a bit, with FilmRatings.com confirming that the film has secured a PG rating. This will likely come as a relief to fans of the characters, as they have always been family-friendly, even when making jokes about unsettling subjects, with the rating revealing that the comedy will be much more lighthearted than Zombie's straightforward horror projects. Zombie's The Munsters doesn't yet have a release date.

The new film is reportedly rated PG for "macabre and suggestive material, scary images and language." Interestingly, the site also notes that the film is coming from Universal Home Entertainment, implying that the film will ultimately debut in the home video market. Given Universal's push to bring more original content to streaming service Peacock, we surely won't be surprised if the platform becomes the ultimate home for the project.

Filming on the project kicked off late last year, with Zombie himself often taking to social media to share updates about the project with fans. The film earning a rating would seemingly confirm that the edit of the film has been locked, with the filmmaker potentially having been editing as he was shooting, though fans might notice that an official announcement that the project had wrapped filming has been noticeably absent from social media.

Previously confirmed cast members for Zombie's version of The Munsters include a host of his former collaborators with Jeff Daniel Phillips (The Lords of Salem, Halloween II) as Herman Munster, Daniel Roebuck (3 From Hell, 31) as Grandpa Munster, and Sherri Moon Zombie as Lily Munster. Fans can also expect Richard Brake (31, 3 from Hell) as Dr. Henry Augustus Wolfgang and Sylvester McCoy (Doctor Who) as Igor.  

Given his tendencies for violent subject matter, some fans might be surprised that Zombie helmed the project, though Roebuck previously expressed what made him the perfect candidate for the job.

"There's not a better person in Hollywood, or anywhere else on the planet, who should be making The Munsters movie other than Rob Zombie," Roebuck shared with Horror Geek Life last year. "It's gone through the hands of so many other people and I know Rob wasn't just looking for something to attach his coattails to. He's a huge fan of it and being a life-long fan approaching this material it really is as good as it gets. I know Sheri, and nobody works harder than Sheri Zombie. I've written a part for her in a movie I wrote and directed, as well as another film I co-wrote and co-directed, so that's what I think of her talent. I think she's terrific and I absolutely love working with her."

He continued, "I really hope audiences walk away feeling entertained and laughing. That's all we really hope for making any movie, well, unless it's a drama. If all goes well and people really like, maybe we'll get the chance to do it again. I just hope people realize that they'll have a whole new version of The Munsters that can live and co-exist side-by-side with the original version of The Munsters. No one wants to replace it, we all love it so much. We just want to shine a spotlight on it with our approach which I think is the best way to look at it."

Stay tuned for details on the release of The Munsters.

Are you glad the film scored a PG rating? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars.