YA horror fans, get ready: This Is Not a Test is getting the big-screen treatment.
The apocalyptic thriller, based on Courtney Summers’ novel of the same name, is officially in development with Cruel Summer's Olivia Holt, The Strangers: Chapter 1’s Froy Gutierrez, and Bros star Luke MacFarlane leading the cast. Directed by Adam MacDonald (Backcountry, Pyewacket), the film is being described as The Breakfast Club meets 28 Weeks Later, which sounds like a messy, emotional, and bloody good time.
For those unfamiliar, This Is Not a Test follows Sloane (Holt), a high schooler grappling with her own struggles when a full-scale zombie outbreak forces her and four other students to take shelter in their high school. As the infected pound on the doors, Sloane—who initially had no will to survive—starts seeing the world through the eyes of those who desperately want to live. And when push comes to shove, she decides to take matters into her own hands.
Producer Cybill Lui promises the film will be both an emotional and terrifying ride, telling Variety, “We’re dead set on making an intense, emotional, and gripping film set in the ‘90s.”
With intentional comparisons to The Breakfast Club, we can probably expect a group of misfits, deep personal revelations, and the impending threat of zombies instead of Saturday detention.
Outside of how much we love the plot, having daddy MacFarlane and hunky Gutierrez as part of the cast adds another layer of excitement to the project. While details on their roles remain under wraps, their involvement signals that This Is Not a Test could deliver some much-needed queer representation in the YA horror genre outside of just casting queer people.
If the film follows the book closely, there’s already a notable queer character at the heart of the story. They'd be smart to tap into that, and doing so would set this adaptation apart in an era of mainstream horror that is still catching up on LGBTQ+ inclusion.
Summers herself is thrilled with the adaptation, stating, “From its stellar script to its exciting cast, [MacDonald and Lui’s] enthusiasm for the book and their passion for filmmaking has and continues to define every part of this process. I can’t wait to see the story come to life—or should I say death?”
No release date has been announced yet, but with filming set to begin in Canada this month, it likely won’t be long before we get some more details, such as who will take on which character. Hopedfully, horror audiences will get the queer representation they deserve!
