The upcoming Walking Dead film is rumored to receive a "hard-R" rating when it finally hits theaters.
Daniel Richtman revealed on his Patreon page that Walking Dead chief content officer and writer-producer Scott Gimple recently teased that the script he wrote with Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman would be 17+, according to ComicBook.com.
Richtman's comments about the script come in the wake of Gimple previously comparing the film to the 2017 X-Men spinoff Logan, which earned an R-rating for its brutal violence and language. "[The Walking Dead Movie has to] honor people who have invested the time in their lives and the show, but we can't do that at the expense of inviting everybody," Gimple said at the time. "[Avengers: Endgame] was the culmination of years and years and years and years of stuff, but I'm sure people who just showed up had a good time."
The Walking Dead film will serve as the first in a trilogy centered on Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), who last appeared in the AMC series in Season 9, when he was separated from his group, fell and impaled himself on a bar and then disappeared. While few details about the plot have been revealed, the movies are expected to explore what Grimes has been going through since exiting the main series.
Lincoln confirmed in December that the film would begin shooting in spring 2021 after being delayed several times. The actor's comments marked the first update since Gimple announced Lincoln's return in a film trilogy in Nov. 2018. The film trilogy was initially planned as a trio of AMC originals that would air on the network. When AMC Studios and Skybound Entertainment partnered with Universal Pictures, it was announced that the films would be released in theaters.
In addition to the planned Grimes trilogy, Gimple teased earlier this year that a film centered on Michonne -- the character portrayed by Dania Gurira -- may be in the works. "With the films, we definitely have plans. But even beyond the current plans, I have some ambitions," Gimple said. "I love her and Rick together, but I love seeing her as the pure lead on her own, too. It just so happens that there's a lot of story terrain to cover. But you're right: it's ambitions. Right now, the plans have to do with the feature film."
Being directed by Rosemary Rodriguez, the untitled The Walking Dead film does not currently have a release date. The Walking Dead series stars Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Josh McDermitt, Christian Serratos, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Seth Gilliam, Ross Marquand, Khary Payton and Cooper Andrews. Season 10 returns Sunday, Feb. 28, 2021 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on AMC.
Source: DanielRPK, via ComicBook.com