Joe Manganiello is set to star in and produce the upcoming zombie thriller Mountain Man, which will be an adaptation of the popular book series of the same name from Keith C. Blackmore.

Mountain Man tells the story of Gus, “a lonely post-apocalyptic survivor facing isolation and the ever-present specter of a zombie attack, who struggles with alcohol abuse and suicidal thoughts until he discovers another survivor, a captivating woman who poses another threat altogether.”

John Lee (False Positive) is directing the film from a script by Matt Deller, with Nick and Joe Manganiello’s 3:59 producing alongside Danny Chan (Barbarian).

Joe and Nick said in a statement: “John is a brilliant creative mind. We’ve been looking for the right thing to do together since we filmed Pee Wee’s Big Holiday and it’s finally here. Very excited to get to work on such weird, wild project with him.”

Film Bridge International’s Ellen Wander and Jordan Dykstra added: “We are very excited to be introducing Mountain Man, a known piece of intellectual property in the genre space, and a great team behind it. This is exactly the kind of material our customers are asking for in the marketplace.”

The description of the book reads: “A man must survive the zombie apocalypse armed with only a shotgun, a Samurai bat, and the will to live among the unliving in this horror series debut.

“It’s been two years since civilization ended in an unstoppable wave of chaos and blood. Now, former house painter Augustus “Gus” Berry lives a day-to-day existence of waking up, getting drunk, and preparing for the inevitable moment when “they” will come up the side of his mountain and penetrate his fortress.

“Living on the outskirts of Annapolis, Gus goes scavenging for whatever supplies remain in the undead suburbia below. Every time he descends the mountain could be his last. But when Gus encounters another survivor, he soon realizes the zombie horde may not be the greatest threat he faces . . .

“Combining heart-pounding action in a frozen dystopia with complex characters and dark humor, Mountain Man kicks off Keith C. Blackmore’s thrilling survival series—perfect for fans of HBO’s The Last of Us.”

This could end up being a great movie and a perfect project for Manganiello to take on! The film project will enter production later this year.

Source: Deadline