Elijah Wood to Produce Zombie Movie that Doubles as Immigration Metaphor

Elijah Wood's production company, Spectrevision, will produce the upcoming Curse the Darkness, which they characterize as an "anthropological zombie film."

Like most of the great works about zombies, such as 28 Days Later and The Walking Dead, the film will serve as both horror fare and social commentary: "Set against the modern day backdrop of undocumented workers laboring in the Louisiana sugarcane fields, the story is a terrifying look at the systematic exploitation of the labor force by large corporate entities, as well as a portrait of the plight of undocumented workers in the United States."

The title is likely a reference to the proverb, "Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness," as well as a reference to the literal darkness that may bring out zombies. This proverb has often been used to suggest a response to ignorance, although the hopeful, optimistic part has been conveniently left out.

"We always said we wanted to stay away from the zombie genre, as it's been so well covered, but when we read Brandon's script, we encountered a take on the genre that simply had to be realized," said Wood, whose company specializes in horror films. "Curse the Darkness is both a chilling exercise in horror and an incisive polemic against the conditions of illegal immigrants in this country."

Wood will produce, along with his partners Daniel Noah and Josh C. Waller. Brandon Maurice Williams wrote the script, which Jorge Michael Grau will direct. It will film in Louisiana starting in October and is currently casting.