Zombie movies are back in style, and that means we’re in store for a whole bunch of remakes, sequels, and adaptations on the horizon. Which brings our thoughts to one of the biggest zombie movies of the 2010s, World War Z. This zombie movie hit hard, portraying dangerously fast zombies—and that’s before they began to swarm. The movie was an absolute hit, and Paramount has finally promised us the sequel we’ve all been waiting for. However, what we really need is a remake that faithfully follows the source material. Hard as it may be to believe, the movie and the book have little in common.
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To put it another way, fans of World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, written by Max Brooks, were robbed. What we got as a movie was impressive and haunting, but it is so far from the source material that even the author had to comment on it. Given the rising zombie trend and the resurgence in World War Z interest, now is the perfect time to give up an accurate adaptation of the novel.
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
World War Z, the movie, followed a very different course than the novel. In the movie, viewers had one protagonist: Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt), who ambitiously tracks down either the source of the zombie virus or a potential cure. It’s an action-packed adventure from start to finish.
It’s also not the book at all. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War is more of a collection of individual accounts, meaning that the story is told through dozens of different perspectives, letting readers piece the whole picture together on their own. Effectively, these stories unfold through interviews with different survivors.
Interview examples include Todd Wainio (voiced by Mark Hamill in the audiobook), the U.S. Army soldier who was there for the Battle of Yonkers. This battle was meant to be a big win for the people, but instead, it was a different turn in the war. This harrowing scene helps drive home just how desperate the zombie war has become, and how humanity’s weapons are not equipped to handle this scale.
Conversely, there’s Maria Zhuganova’s story (narrated by Jeri Ryan), whose narrative highlights the earlier battles against the zombie virus. She and fellow soldiers were ordered to track down villagers who may have been bitten, with little to no explanation about what to look for or the potential dangers involved.
The Potential for a Television Show
Since World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War portrays such diverse stories and perspectives, this story would be perfectly suited for an anthology-style television series. Each episode could loosely cover a different interview, with mini-arcs covering locations or major events within the Zombie War.
The audiobook cast of World War Z helps highlight how well this structure could work. Max Brooks (the writer) voiced the interviewer, while dozens of big names stepped in to lend their voices to different characters. The same could happen for the television series, allowing for a rotating cast of characters to come and go as needed. Think Black Mirror, but with zombies.
In an ideal world, we would love to see a lot of these actors and voice actors reprise their roles for a live-action take. However, we understand that this may not be entirely possible. We’re still going to root for Mark Hamill’s take on Todd Wainio.
What the Show Could Get Right
Ultimately, the World War Z movie opted to go for a linear timeline, but in doing so, it cut the global tapestry that made World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War such a different zombie experience. There’s little to no political nuance or moral complexity. Naturally, these are things that a new adaptation could fix, as long as they stick to the oral anthology format.
It goes without saying that a World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War show could literally lean into the documentary style, embracing the aesthetic and making a faux-documentary full of interviews and clips. This wouldn’t stop creators from including bits of action, as dramatized flashbacks could easily fill these gaps.
While we admit that World War Z was a fun zombie movie, it falls a little too close to a stereotypical action movie for our liking. This is why we’re still craving something more like the original novel. Perhaps one day we’ll see this story come to life.
World War Z is available to stream on Paramount+ and Tubi starting on September 1.
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image courtesy of 20th Century Studios
