EXCLUSIVE: Orion Pictures has set Roxanne Benjamin (Southbound) to pen a reimagining of the 1984 doomsday horror-comedy-sci-fi Night Of The Comet.

The cult original followed two sisters facing off against cannibal zombies after a comet wipes out most of life on Earth. The film and its female protagonists hit home with genre fans including Joss Whedon who credited it as one of the inspirations for Buffy Summers. The update will skew horror-sci-fi rather than comedy, I understand.

Thom Eberhardt wrote and directed the original, which starred Kelli Maroney, Robert Beltran and Catherine Mary Stewart. Made on a budget of under $1M it went on to make $14M in the U.S.

Benjamin recently wrote, directed, and produced feature thriller Body At Brighton Rock, which is currently in post-production and is set to be released by Magnet next year. She previously produced the V/H/S franchise and directed on horror movies XX and Southbound.

Orion’s upcoming slate includes the Child’s Play update, horror The Prodigy, Gretel And Hansel and the Bill And Ted reboot.

Benjamin is repped by CAA and Grandview.