Colin Firth to star in zombie movie New York Will Eat You Alive

Throughout his career Colin Firth has fought many things, from the perils of a wet shirt in Pride and Prejudice to an army of brainwashed hicks in Kingsman. But he's never tackled the undead – until now.

The Oscar-winning star of The King's Speech will now be facing an apocalyptic zombie outbreak in comic book adaptation New York Will Eat You Alive, reports Deadline. The movie is based on Jia Haibo's digital Tencent comic strip Zombie Brother, which has already sparked a hugely successful franchise.

Deadline states: "The comic book is said to have over 28 billion views, while its animated series has amassed more than 3.7 billion views across its first two seasons. The franchise has also been adapted into a stage play."

The comic book movie will come from distributor STXfilms, working in collaboration with Tencent Pictures, Channing Tatum's production company Free Association and director Todd Strauss-Schulson. The filmmaker is responsible for 2019 rom-com Isn't It Romantic, starring Rebel Wilson and Liam Hemsworth. The script will be written by Key & Peele and Community regular Alex Rubens.

STXfilms chairman Adam Fogelson said: “We always wanted to cast this in a way that would give life to the source material and elevate the action and you can’t achieve that goal any better than hiring Colin Firth. From The King’s Speech to Kingsman, Colin always gives an Oscar-caliber performance. We’re thrilled to be reuniting with him on New York Will Eat You Alive in a role that will allow him to have fun while showcasing his deadpan humor and comic timing.”

With his penchant for deadpan comedy and surprising action chops (who can forget that church bloodbath in Kingsman), Firth may be well positioned to tackle the ravenous hordes of flesh-eaters. What do you think? Let us know on Twitter @Cineworld. And don't forget that Kingsman prequel movie The King's Man is due for release in 2021.