Animator Yeon Sang-Ho made his live-action debut this with the hit action horror, Train To Busan. The film was a festival favorite during the summer and has since earned the favor of many a critic and moviegoer, in addition to a raft of studios competing for the English-language remake rights in a few months prior to its release.
As it turns out, according to Variety, the victor now lies with Gaumont, beating out Canal+, Sony and other studios for the remake rights. Starring Gong Yoo and Ma Dong-Seok as a follow-up to Yeon’s 2014 animated movie, Seoul Station, the film centered around a father struggling to reconnect with his young daughter, only to get swept into an epic battle for survival when a mysterious viral outbreak consumes the Busan-bound bullet train they’re on, turning its passengers into rabid zombies.
per Variety:
“We are more than happy to start our business with Gaumont, one of the greatest film companies with rich experience in terms of global projects. We hope this opportunity could let Korean films get more attention and be familiar with the audience all over the world,” said Kim Woo-taek, CEO of Next World Entertainment [NEW].
Gaumont’s CEO Sidonie Dumas said the company had been “chasing the remake since Cannes Film Festival where the whole team loved it so much.”
“We’re excited to start working on the U.S. adaptation that will mark our first foray into English-language moviemaking in Los Angeles,” added Dumas.
Casting and crewing info remain pending for the film which is said to be set in the U.S. upon production launch.