Zack Snyder Credits James Gunn With Dawn of the Dead's Craziest Moment

Even before he directed Watchmen or Man of Steel, Zack Snyder has courted controversy when it comes to his movie choices. The Rebel Moon director recently sat down with Letterboxd to talk about his new Netflix movie, while also fielding questions about the rest of his career, including his debut feature film, Dawn of the Dead. Directing a remake of George A. Romero's 1978 classic movie was enough to earn a lot of ire before the movie was even made, but upon release (like most of Snyder's movies) was met with great enthusiasm by his fans and film goers.

One way that Zack Snyder was able to circumvent the naysayers was by going in a different direction altogether, something that screenwriter James Gunn would also take to heart when writing the remake. They did this by taking action and wild choices to heart, including the disturbing moment when a pregnant woman turns into a zombie and then gives birth to a zombie baby.

When asked if the zombie baby, which occurs as one of the biggest twists in the 2004 Dawn of the Dead remake, was either his idea or if it was James Gunn's, and the director was quick to give credit where it's due. "That was a James Gunn idea a hundred percent, and I give him full credit for it," Snyder said with a smile. "I loved it, by the way, so I thank him for it."

Despite both filmmakers having a history with DC Comics on the big screen, Dawn of the Dead (2004) marks the only collaboration between Zack Snyder and James Gunn. Dawn of the Dead was met with positive reception upon release, but even in the time since then its status in the horror genre has only gotten better and it has become a highly appreciated remake from an era with very few. Even still, both Gunn and Snyder have spoken fondly about both the making of the movie and the contributions that the other brought to the project.

"What many younger people don't know is the online community went crazy at the idea the film was being remade. There was a petition with hundreds of thousands of names not to do so. I got actual hand-written death threats," James Gunn said in a thread online about the making of the movie. "It's hard to be the target of the public's ire when you're famous. It's worse when you're barely known, which I was then. I was like, 'Guys, I'm one of you! Love the movie!' but to most I was just 'the Scooby-Doo guy."

Dawn of the Dead streaming

The Zack Snyder and James Gunn version of Dawn of the Dead, released in 2004, is currently available for streaming on Starz, but moves around to different streaming services with some frequency. The original, George A. Romero version of Dawn of the Dead however is very famously NOT available for streaming on any platform, including digital rentals or purchases.