John Landis is back and this time he has Simon Pegg

It has been over ten years since veteran horror/comedy director John Landis (An American Werewolf in London, Animal House) has directed for the big screen.  Sticking to television projects to keep busy, Landis has contributed to Masters of Horror, Fear Itself, and several random episodes of Psych. Thankfully Landis is about to start production on a black horror/comedy called Burke and Hare.

Burke and Hare will focus on the infamous West Port murders that took place during 1827 and 1828 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Two Irish immigrants, William Burke and William Hare, managed to make a few extra quid by murdering a total of 17 tenants in Hare’s lodging house. The two then sold the bodies to the University of Edinburgh Medical College, capitalizing on the significant lack of available research cadavers for med-schools at the time. Yes sir, the perfect plot for hilarity and hijinks.

Additionally, Dread-Central is reporting that Landis has cast Simon Pegg in Burk and Hare. Pegg will reportedly play one of the leading roles, though it has not been announced if he will play Burk or Hare. Pegg is no stranger to the horror/comedy genre. Pegg co-wrote and starred in 2004’s Shaun of the Dead, the brilliant and hilarious “rom-zom-com.” There is no news as to whether or not Nick Frost, Pegg’s partner in crime, will join the cast.