The Dead Lands: How The Shudder Show Differs From The Original Movie

Glenn Standring’s new horror series The Dead Lands takes inspiration from a 2014 film of the same name and, while there are some similarities, there are also major differences. The Dead Lands follows the story of the dishonored undead warrior Waka Nuku Rau and explores ancient Māori culture as he searches for honor in the realm of the living. Along his journey, he discovers that zombies have risen and are threatening the existence of the human race. The 2014 film was directed by Tao Fraser and also created by Standring.

Before The Dead Lands became the zombie filled Shudder series it is today, it originated as an action film. The film follows the son of the chief of the Māori, Hongi, as a war with a rival tribe is on the horizon. Set in ancient Māori times just like the series, Hongi encounters spirits of the past that lead him towards his destiny of saving a mortally wounded warrior. The clan adopts the warrior into their community and Hongi’s ancestors lead him into the afterlife.

The biggest similarities between the series and the film are truly derived in the history of the Māori people and its setting during the ancient times of the indigenous people. Waka Nuku Rau is a warrior who was mortally injured and was rejected in the afterlife. The emphasis on warriors, the mysteries of the afterlife, and supernatural aspects all exist in both of The Dead Lands. That is where there similarities end and their abundance of differences begin.

How The Series Differs From The Original Movie

Fraser’s The Dead Lands film focuses solely on the historical battles that took place between tribes of the Māori people as well as the high praise warriors received from their villages. It is a movie with the primary intentions of showing action through an ancient rivalry and war. The series focuses on themes of honor and, of course, the undead. Between the two, the most obvious differences are their genres and content. Beyond these facts, the series is told through the eyes of the warrior rather than the individual who is assisting them in their journey.

The film is an action-packed journey from beginning to end whereas the series guides the story along steadily towards scenes that feature various themes such as zombies, the Māori supernatural religious practices, concepts of the afterlife, and purgatory. It is far more detailed than its predecessor and ensures that the historical significance of the setting, landscape, and people are emphasized. A series has greater opportunity to provide an abundance of detail with the ability of multiple episodes. Perhaps if The Dead Lands film was an action series with a range of installments it could have the opportunity of providing an audience with the same amount of information as the series.

Regardless of their differences, both The Dead Lands series and film are impressive works in action and horror cinema history that showcase the historical significance of the Māori people just in drastically different ways. While their similarities are few and far between, the film’s influence on Standring’s series is apparent through the warrior Waka Nuku Rau and the afterlife. The Dead Lands series is now available to stream through Shudder.

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