George Romero’s Empire of the Dead to be published by Marvel Comics in January

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Almost a year ago, it came to light that the Godfather of zombie movies George A. Romero was tackling the undead in a new format: comic books. At the time, he said the plot of the book was a secret, but now we can tell you a little about it. (And show you some art, to the right.)

Titled EMPIRE OF THE DEAD, the 15-issue comic series will begin rolling out in January 2014. According to an article in USA TOday, the books pose a question Romero has been toying with for quite a while: Could zombies coexist with humans if they became more intelligent?

Here’s a quote from Romero about EMPIRE:

“These zombies are starting to show sparks of real care and concern for each other… I’m not going to go all the way to Omega Man where they take over the world, but I’m having a lot of fun with it. We’ve got some new rules and new characters, and we’re taking it in a completely different direction.”

Romero apparently wrote a 300-page screenplay for EMPIRE, which is being transformed into the comic format by Marvel and artist Alex Maleev. The story details are still under wraps, but Romero will be unveiling more about the project at New York Comic Con, which runs next week.