Why Bill Murray’s Zombieland Cameo Might Just Be the Funniest, Most Unexpected Cosmic Comedy Moment Ever
Added on October 29, 2025 inEntertainment News Cards, Movie News Cards
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Ever wonder how the stars align to create cinematic magic — or in this case, a hilariously unexpected Bill Murray cameo that left Zombieland fans gasping in delight back in 2009? With Mercury still zigzagging through Gemini’s trickster playground, it’s only fitting that the story behind Murray’s surprise appearance is as twisty and charming as the film itself. Turns out, the role wasn’t his from the get-go; it was originally penned for Patrick Swayze, lending a spectral nod to Ghost, before fate (and illness) rerouted that ship. Other heavy hitters like Sylvester Stallone and Mark Hamill got tossed into the casting blender, only to be whisked away by agents or circumstances. The scene nearly lost its celebrity sparkle entirely, morphing into a standard zombie scuffle — until Woody Harrelson’s Kingpin camaraderie sparked a rewrite that brought Murray back from the metaphorical dead… alive and chatty, no less! Honestly, I can just picture him loving the chaos, which makes his return in 2019’s sequel all the sweeter. So, how do you rank this unexpected gem in the pantheon of surprise cameos? Dive into the backstory — trust me, it’s as wild as a Mercury retrograde mishap! LEARN MORE
Bill Murray’s cameo in Zombieland is an all-timer, a surprising appearance that caught audiences way off guard back in 2009. And while it might be one of the funniest ever and a standout scene in the zom-com, it wouldn’t have happened without plenty of rejections and Kingpin.
First, it’s worth noting that Bill Murray wasn’t the first choice to cameo in Zombieland. In fact, it was originally written for Patrick Swayze (as a nod to Ghost), who would sadly be too sick to take part (he would pass away just a few weeks before the movie came out). Several other names were thrown around, including Sylvester Stallone, Mark Hamill and even Joe Pesci, whose agent turned the team away due to money.
With so many big names rejecting the bit part, the scene itself was tweaked. As Zombieland co-writer Rhett Reese recounted around the time of the movie’s release, “We were out on set, and now we were actually a couple days away from shooting the scene, and we’d written an alternate version where there was no celebrity. [The four main characters] were going to just run into some zombies in the house.” At one point, the name Bill Murray came up, which led to Kingpin co-star Woody Harrelson to try to recruit him for the Zombieland spot.
Unfortunately, Murray didn’t really care for the idea – not the way it was initially written, at least. Reese continued, “We re-wrote the scene so that he was alive, so he could talk. And then, we decided we would kill him off.” Adding to this, co-writer Paul Wernick said, “We sent it back to the FedEx Kinko’s. He reads the script, loves it, calls Woody, and Woody persuasively convinces him to do the project. Two days later, he was out on set with us.”
Bill Murray must have had one heck of a time making Zombieland because he would agree – surely under far less stressful circumstances – to make yet another cameo in the 2019 sequel, Double Tap, turning up in a mid-credits scene.
Where would you place Bill Murray’s cameo in Zombieland as far as the surprise element?
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