With Zombieland hitting DVD shelves across the country on tuesday, we thought it was only appropriate to share with you some of the cool features from the DVD and Blu-Ray release. We’ll be bringing you some cool bonus material from the release all week, but of course the most important material to any DVD: the deleted scenes.

With the film making over 3 times their production budget, and the film’s writers, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, getting picked up for such films as Deadpool and GI Joe 2, you can believe that the DVD will be as hot as the theatrical release. After the jump, we’ve got two brand new deleted scenes from the movie, including another rule to surviving the zombie apocalypse that never made the final cut, and an extended scene from the grocery store.

Be sure to check out the deleted scenes, and check back here this week for more of our coverage of the Zombieland DVD and Blu-Ray release.

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Much like vampires, zombies are having quite the resurgence these days. Not that they ever really went anywhere, but it seems after the success of Zombieland (and video games like Left 4 Dead) everyone in Hollywood wants a piece of the zombie pie (which, while popular, probably wouldn’t taste very good).

Recently, AMC announced they were adapting Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead for the network with Frank Darabont in charge and now, not to be left out, MTV is apparently turning George Romero’s classic Dawn of the Dead into a TV series.  Yes, one more non-music program on a channel named Music Television.  Don’t worry, it’s doubtful they’ll make the zombies dance.  At least in that MTV will preserve the greatness that is Michael Jackson’s Thriller video.

So far MTV has not made any details about the project available:

“They haven’t given away much in terms of details surrounding the show, how it will link to the original film or even when it might hit the air. They have noted the show will feature a mix of the classic, slow moving zombies and the latest fad of turning the undead into Olympic sprinters. It’s good to see so much diversity on television.”

A television series based on zombies may seem unconventional, but one only has to look to shows like HBO‘s True Blood to understand the supernatural appeal. Moreover, I can’t help but wonder if some, if not all, of MTV’s motivation is driven by Zombieland itself.  While made into a movie, Zombieland was originally pitched to CBS as a television series.  Coincidence? Perhaps not.

No matter how the project started, is anyone really going to complain about more zombies to watch?  I didn’t think so.

Only a day after being announced as writers for the upcoming Deadpool movie, Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese have gotten yet another gig as the writers for the sequel to another summer movie franchise: G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. Taking over from the guys who had written the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, and giving it to the team that brought us Zombieland, is I think a step in the right direction.

All of the main cast from the first film are contracted to return for sequels, with director Steven Sommers being the possible hold out. But, with the promise of this new writing team, hopefully the next GI Joe film can add more story to go with the anticipated amount of destruction.

The Rise of Cobra, now available on DVD, cost a reported $170 million and has so far brought in just over $300 million worldwide. But with a Rotten Tomatoes score of about 36%, it’s really got no place to go but up.

While it was only a rumor back in December, it looks like Fox has finally tapped writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wenick, who are most notably the writers of 2009′s hit Zombieland, to pen the upcoming Deadpool film — which is spun off from last year’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

While Ryan Reynolds is already committed to play Green Lantern for DC and Warner Bros, he is allegedly still signed on to return as the Merc With the Mouth. According to Variety, this contract may mean that the film is on the way, just no word on when:

There is no timetable on the Marvel property, though Reynolds has a window after wrapping the “Green Lantern” this summer. Reynolds has been bulking up to play the DC Comics’ hero “Green Lantern,” which starts lensing next month. This means he would already be in superhero shape if the script for “Deadpool” is ready by summer.

Reese and Wernick will stay true to the mythology of “Deadpool” given that Reynolds is a huge fan and protector of the property.

This is all good news coming from the Fox camp, since fans were a bit worried when Reynolds was signed as both a DC and Marvel film hero. Reese and Wenick are no strangers to the comic-to-film world, as they also penned a draft of Venom for Sony and Marvel last year.

2009 was a great year for films in general, particularly if you’re a fan of the sci-fi genre. The year also saw the return of a beloved franchise to the big screen as well as the latest film by one of our best modern directors. And even with the current condition of the country and the economy, audiences still managed to fill theaters and the movies enjoyed record breaking successes that hopefully will continue on into the new year.

Even with all the great movies in 2009, there were also some not so great ones. Sadly, there will always be some real bombs, but that’s to be expected. Fortunately, there were also quite a few standouts that helped keep us entertained, enthralled and excited about going to the movies in 2009.

As usual with lists of this type, I need to disclaim and say this is my list of what I felt were the best films of 2009. Nobody can see everything and opinions vary. Your list may be different.

Differing opinions and the freedom to express them are one of the things that make this country great. There’s always something new and different to see and do and we all get to choose what’s best for us. What movies we watch and enjoy is no exception.

That said, here then is my list, in no particular order, of the films I feel were the best of 2009.

Inglourious Basterds — 2009 saw the return of director Quentin Tarantino and the release of this amazing film. Some might consider it overlong or self-indulgent, but it showcases Tarantino’s filmmmaking skills at their finest and serves as an example of one filmmaker’s singular vision and immense storytelling craft.

This film provides the audience with something they never got from real life: closure. To finally see the Nazis, and in particular Hitler, get the ending they deserve is a testament to the power of this film and to its creator.

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With Ryan Reynolds becoming a hot commodity in the world of Comic Book films, between getting signed as Green Lantern and Deadpool, it looks like things are still heating up for a Deadpool film over at Fox. CHUD recently got word that Zombieland writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are allegedly penning a script for Deadpool.

“While nothing is official just yet, it looks like Fox could be hiring Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the writers of Zombieland, to script the adventures of the Merc With A Mouth. I did my due diligence and asked around but couldn’t get a solid confirmation, so regard this one as a strong rumor… But if it’s more than a rumor – and my source tells me there could be a trade break announcing this within days – it’s actually a very good sign for Deadpool.”

Most of the film and comic fan community was torn on the thought of a Deadpool film after seeing what the studio did with the character in May’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but Reynolds himself stated that the film will be “just like the comics”, including the mask, schizophrenia, and demolition of the fourth wall.

Up next for the Zombieland scribes is actually a sequel to the highly successful undead comedy. Word is that Zombieland 2 will start production next year, and will be shot in 3D.

I firmly believe Zombieland was one of the best films of 2009. It simply came out of nowhere, defied expectations, and even went so far as to inspire some of us.  Given the films success it’s no surprise that a sequel would be on the horizon. Now, Variety is able to confirm that a sequel is in development and chances are it will be in 3D:

“Everyone had fun watching (the first) ‘Zombieland’; making it a more visceral experience can only make it better,” said the film’s producer Gavin Polone. “I don’t think you want to see ‘Ordinary People’ in 3-D. But ‘Zombieland’ is clearly one movie that will benefit from (the technique).”

Now, I’ve never been sold on the whole 3D thing.  Personally, I think it’s a gimmick and haven’t gone out of my way to see any recent 3D films.  Simply put, I have yet to find a compelling reason to see a film in 3D over its standard counterpart.

That being said, Zombieland may just be the film I actively seek out a 3D theater to see it in.  It was so brilliantly campy that it begs to bring that pseudo third dimension to the adventures of Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) and Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg). It’s perfect, and so would a title of Z3D.  Okay, that may work better for a third film, but it’s still cool.

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There’s no arguing that the proliferation of file sharing technology (e.g. BitTorrent or similar) has changed the industry for content creators. Never before has it been easier to acquire free movies or music. Or has it?

For the last several years we, the consumers, have had to endure the complaints (dare I say whining) of movie studios and the recording industry. Both industries cite digital piracy as the root cause of their financial loss. Funny how this argument rarely (if ever) surfaced during the days of analog.

Piracy of content has been going on for decades, long before the Internet was around. With the advent of the VCR and Cassette Recorder (which I guess would technically be an ACR) people have been able to duplicate content with relative ease. I remember when stereos started to come out with not one but two cassette bays for this purpose alone. Drop in a master tape, then a blank tape and copy away.

The same was true for movies. I had friends who subscribed to their movie channel of choice, and then regularly recorded movies from the television to tape for later viewing. All one had to do was hook up two VCRs and you could easily duplicate those tapes for friends. All those years of consumers pirating content and hardly a word from media moguls about lost revenue.

Fast forward to today. It seems not a week goes by without someone in the world of entertainment getting on a soapbox and crying fowl over the horrors of piracy. On the box this week: Rhett Reese, co-writer of Zombieland.

Reese started somewhat of a firestorm after commenting on the fact Zombieland is currently the most popular download on BitTorrent, “Beyond depressing. This greatly affects the likelihood of a Zombieland 2.”

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Shaun of the Dead started a new trend of horror comedies that was once lost after the mainstream success of the Ghostbusters franchise in the late 80s. From there, films like Zombieland and Fido took the ball and ran with it. It was only a matter of time before the formula was used on something other than the zombie genre.

Enter Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, a new horror comedy in the works that puts the “teens killed by hillbillies in the woods” storyline on it’s head. The film shows what it’s like from the other end of the scale, and what if the hillbillies weren’t really all that evil.

Starring Firefly’s Alan Tudyk and Reaper’s Tyler Labine (what could become the American equivalent of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost), the film could help the genre mash-up of Horror Comedy grow some real legs, after Zombieland helped put it on the map this summer.

Check out the first trailer for the film after the jump, and we’ll be sure to have more info on the film (such as a hard release date) as soon as it comes to us.

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Not in the mood to throw on a costume and run around from bar to party to candy-giving front door this year? Why not sit at home with a stack of haunting flicks to get your Halloween jollies off, or better yet, hit the theaters IN COSTUME!

Over the past month, we’ve put together quite a compilation of horror reviews for you to pick and choose what to watch during your Halloweekend, and why not start tonight, on All Hallow’s Eve?

Take a look at our list of Horror Reviews below, from things like Zombieland, which you can currently see in the theaters, to movies like Dance of the Dead, which you could run out and grab at any DVD outlet. Put together your favorite scary movie queue from these titles for a guaranteed haunting Halloween marathon!

In Theaters:

• Paranormal Activity

• Zombieland

• The Stepfather

• Saw VI

• House of the Devil

On DVD:

• The Hills Run Red

• Trick R’ Treat

• Dance of The Dead

• Dark Floors

• Evil Dead 2

• Child’s Play

• Friday The 13th

When it comes to horror,  for the last several years October has been monopolized by the persistent and prolific offerings of a one Saw series. Jigsaw might be smarting a bit this Monday, because he was decidedly trounced by “the little demon that could,” otherwise known as Paranormal Activity.

Based on early estimates from Box Office Mojo,  Paranormal Activity finally claimed the top spot at the box office in its fifth week of release.  This makes it only the second movie this decade to do so after that many weeks in release, the other being Gran Torrino (2008).   Scaring up another $22M, the film played on 1,956 screens and brought its cumulative total up to $62.4M.

Despite playing on over 1,000 more screens than Paranormal, Saw VI brought in only $14.8M for second place.  This is the worst opening weekend for the franchise since the original Saw.

Where the Wild Things Are had a fairly steep dropoff of 55.9% from its opening week, which indicates few repeat attendees, and less than stellar word of mouth.  Still, it made $14.4 bringing its cumulative total to $53.9M for its first two weeks.

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Anybody who’s been to a theater in the past year or so knows that zombies are all the rave today. From Sony’s Zombieland bringing in nearly $65 million in a matter of weeks, to the sudden resurgence in the work of George A. Romero, zombies are neck-and-neck with vampires these days.

With that said, of course the craze is bound to hit the video game world, as it did in spades with last year’s Left 4 Dead. The game managed to cram every zombie movie scenario into a first-person shooter to make you feel like you were really fighting for your life against an army of the undead, as scary as that sounds. While there were some pretty haunting moments in the game, there really isn’t anything as cathartic as blowing up zombie heads.

Like clockwork, game developer Valve (along with EA Games) is releasing the sequel to the highly-praised game this year around the same time. The characters are all new, as are the settings, but the most important is the new storyline. Many games these days are more compelling than some films, and the newest trailer for the game only proves that further.

Check out the Zombie Survival Guide trailer after the jump, and be sure to race to the game stores on November 17th when the game gets a nationwide release.

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