Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy will have to battle more than just their personal faults in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies . Based on the book by Seth Grahame-Smith, the action film takes one of Jane Austen's most beloved books, Pride and Prejudice, and transports it into a supernatural world crawling with zombies. In the film, a zombie plague spreads just before Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy meet, and the two tip toe around each other while also fighting off deadly zombies. Needless to say, this isn't your mother's Pride and Prejudice adaptation, oh no. Here, the Bennet sisters are not fighting over bonnets and dresses. Instead, they have all trained in martial arts and are fierce, zombie-killing machines. Darcy is not just a stuck up rich boy, he's an experienced zombie hunter, and Wickham, well, he's still a villain. With Jane Austen's beloved characters going into battle on the big screen, it's no wonder that fans are already wondering whether or not they'll survive to have a Pride and Prejudice and Zombies sequel.
As with any action movie/reboot released nowadays, there is definitely an option for a Pride and Prejudice and Zombies sequel. It's more than likely that stars Lily James (Elizabeth Bennet), Douglas Booth (Mr. Bingley), Sam Riley (Mr. Darcy) and Bella Heathcote (Jane Bennet) have all signed a contract with an option for sequels, especially considering their up-and-coming status in Hollywood. Furthermore, producer Allison Shearmur confirmed tentative plans for a sequel in an interview with Collider, revealing that this film will end on a bit of a cliffhanger.
Director and screenwriter Burr Steers added that his film did feel like it could naturally lead to at least one follow-up. "It was something I thought of that played out naturally in it because the things I've set up haven't been resolved in this. The Pride and Prejudice resolves, but the other big issues hasn't been resolved," Steers told Collider. This suggests that a sequel would focus less on the will they, won't they romance between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, and more on other aspects of the story — presumably the zombie apocalypse.
Should Pride and Prejudice and Zombies get a sequel, it's unclear whether or not it would follow the book series. The publisher behind Grahame-Smith's original 2009 novel, Quirk Books, has released two other Pride and Prejudice and Zombies books: a prequel titled Dawn of the Dreadfuls, and a sequel called Dreadfully Ever After, both by Steve Hockensmith. So, there is more source material should filmmakers choose to use it for a possible sequel. However, that seems unlikely.
Given Steers' sequel tease, it seems like he has a good idea of where the story is going without the books. Furthermore, Grahame-Smith's notable absence from the bylines of the other two Pride and Prejudice and Zombies books suggests that the author either was not involved or uninterested. Curiously, he was approached to write the script for the film, and supported the film at the premiere. When asked about a potential sequel by The Hollywood Reporter, Grahame-Smith answered, "I suppose if people want it, I'm always happy to revisit the Bennet sisters." If there is a sequel and Grahame-Smith is involved, it seems safe to assume the other books will be left behind.
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies hits theaters on Feb. 5, and no doubt the box office will determine whether or not a sequel gets the green light. It's all in your hands now.
Images: Screen Gems
