Cannon Films may be returning with a Zombie sequel, and more

Last Updated on July 22, 2021

Some of the most fun movies of the '80s came from Cannon Films, a company that was recently the subject of a documentary called ELECTRIC BOOGALOO: THE WILD, UNTOLD STORY OF CANNON FILMS. Action, exploitation, horror, teen comedies, kids' movies, they did it all, their output including the DEATH WISH sequels, multiple Chuck Norris vehicles, the BREAKIN' flicks, THE LAST AMERICAN VIRGIN, COBRA, INVADERS FROM MARS, LIFEFORCE, THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2, and many more. Cannon closed its doors in 1994 and Menahem Golan, who ran the company with his cousin Yoram Globus during its more popular era, has since passed away, but Golan protégé Richard Albiston is now working on bringing the company back.

Albiston founded the new Cannon Films Ltd. in 2014 with the intention of enforcing the ideals of Golan, "putting the artist first and enabling them to have the freedom to create their vision, their way", and has now announced his company's first slate of films.

Among the eight projects being developed at the new Cannon are a few mystery titles; WRITERS BLOCK, THE LEOPARD HUNTS AT MIDNIGHT, U.S. SNIPER (a great mockbuster title there); revivals of classic Cannon franchises with AMERICAN NINJA: APPRENTICE and RETURN OF THE DELTA FORCE; ALLAN QUATERMAIN AND THE JEWEL OF THE EAST, which would appear to be a long-awaited follow-up to Cannon's 1986 release ALLAN QUATERMAIN AND THE LOST CITY OF GOLD; and a couple horror projects – CURSE, based on the novel by Daniel Farson, and ZOMBI: THEY LIVE!

CURSE would tell the following story: 

Richard Truscott becomes the landlord of the Prince Edward on the isolated island of Horracombe. His arrival coincides with the beginning of a series of unnatural accidents. Can anybody escape the grip of Horracombe's curse?

ZOMBI: THEY LIVE! is quite interesting, because it is meant to be a sequel Lucio Fulci's ZOMBIE (a.k.a. ZOMBI 2, made as an unofficial sequel to DAWN OF THE DEAD), ZOMBIE 3, ZOMBIE 4: AFTER DEATH, and ZOMBIE 5: KILLING BIRDS, a series where the installments had nothing to do with each other.

The synopsis for this sixth ZOMBI film:

When a terrorist infected with a deadly viral concoction boards the Trans-Europa Express bound for Istanbul, the military must take action to prevent the spread of the disease. But when the brakes fail on the train, the zombie infested train becomes a deadly juggernaut that is completely unstoppable. Worse, a handful of strangers inside the train are immune to the virus and now must battle zombies and the military if they have any chance at survival…

I hope this Cannon revival will stay on track, because I would love to see that company come back to provide a new era of awesome movies.

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2