Walken, Midler In Oz Zombie-Wife Battle

Director Frank Oz (aka the voice of Miss Piggy and Yoda) reports that there is quite a bit of tension on the set of his remake of the 70's sci-fi/horror film "The Stepford Wives." Specifically, he says that he Bette Midler and Christopher Walken have had a few run ins during the filming. Oz even admitted to a full on screaming match between himself and Walken on the set, and named some other names as well.

In the end, though, the director says that the issues between himself and the actors won't hurt the production of the movie. In fact, he believes the passion on the set will add to the intensity of the film. The stars seem to work out their differences at the end of the day and remain friends, according to Oz.

The original 1975 version of "The Stepford Wives" was a social commentary on the rise of feminism, posing as a sci-fi/horror film. The movie tells the story of a couple who move to the suburbs and find out that the wives of all of the men there have been replaced by zombie-esque subservient robot women. The movie is based on a book by the same name by Ira Levin, who also wrote the horror classic "Rosemary's Baby".

The screenplay for the original movie was written by William Goldman, whose credits include "Marathon Man", "All the President's Men", and most recently, the freaky fecal-horror flick "Dreamcatcher". The new script was crafted by Paul Rudnick (Addams Family Values) and star Nicole Kidman has said the remake is more of a dark comedy than a horror or sci-fi picture. Besides Kidman, Walken, and Midler, the new "Wives" features quite a few big names, including Matthew Broderick, Faith Hill, Glenn Close, and even Jon "Yeah, That's The Ticket" Lovitz.

"The Stepford Wives" remake is scheduled for a June 2004 release.

Source: New York Daily News