"Resident Evil" is in theaters now, but Zach Cregger's mind is clearly already somewhere else — and for good reason.
A few weeks ago, I read "The Flood" script. I've also been sitting on it, mostly because I wasn't sure how to write about it without spoiling the thing. Yesterday I was talking to a friend, and summed it up as "2001" meets "Alien." That's the pitch. That's the movie.
The story takes place on a remote space station, where a female captain and crew chase down a signal from a distant world and uncover an alien object that distorts time, reality, and the mind itself. That’s when things get very complicated to explain. The script resists a clean genre label, though sci-fi thriller is probably how the marketing will land.
Talking to Men’s Health, Cregger confirmed "The Flood" is what he's shooting next, and he sounds almost protective of it:
I just love the story, dude. That movie is about something in a real way that's important to me. It's another bizarre narrative structure in the way that 'Weapons' and 'Barbarian' are, but it's not jumping perspectives.
And then the part people should pay attention to:
It unfolds in a very unique way that I'm really proud of. It's disturbing, but it's not a horror movie, although there are horror scenes in it. It feels intimidating to me. I'm still not really sure how to make it, but I think that's a good thing.
He's telling the truth. The structure is strange. Filled with time jumps and body doubles. It's hard to explain. The film loops back on itself. It quietly reveals that what we've been watching isn't happening in the way it seems to be. Not a flashback structure, and not a twist so much as a time-bending reframing. Don't worry, I'm not giving anything away. What I’m certain of is that this film is going to have some very trippy visuals. Not entirely sure how Cregger is going to pull it all off, but at this point, there is absolutely no reason to bet against the guy.
Asked what inspired “The Flood,” Cregger went where you'd expect:
I'm not comparing it to “2001,” because I think “2001” is a true masterpiece in every sense of the word, there's a bizarreness to that movie that's really undeniable, and it's also a horror movie. I think “2001” is a really thrilling horror movie about human nature, and obviously about artificial intelligence, but it asks big questions. And I think, in that way, there's some similarity with 'Flood.‘
Apparently, Cregger wrote “The Flood” in five days of frenzied writing while trying to land something with Steven Spielberg. One detail he dropped on Kevin McCarthy’s “On Film” podcast — there's an "Irréversible"-style fire-extinguisher sequence in the current draft .. He's been circling Gaspar Noé's scene for three movies now. "I'm going to rip him off," he said, before admitting it might be "maybe a bridge too far" and could get cut.
Spielberg produces. Warner Bros. has it dated for August 11, 2028 — a long wait, but “The Flood” is coming.
Garland's script is written. Boyle called it "fantastic" in that same interview, Murphy says he's ready, and Boyle wants to direct. All that's missing is the money.