Rob Corddry is in final negotiations to join the adaptation of the zombie novel Warm Bodies.  Nicholas Hoult stars as R, a self-aware zombie who falls for the girlfriend of one his victims, played by Teresa Palmer---R protects her from the other zombies as he starts to regain his humanity.  According to Variety, Corddry will play M, the only other zombie like R... at first.  I know nothing of the comedic/dramatic balance of the role, but Corddry is a great addition regardless.Warm Bodies is the next project for director Jonathan Levine, who has quietly built an impressive career for himself.  I know him best as the director of the slight yet charming The Wackness, though your mind may link him to All the Boys Love Mandy Lane.  The dramedy 50/50 comes out September 30, and based on positive early buzz sounds like a big step for the young director.  Warm Bodies is something else entirely, a genre movie with a sentimental twist.  I love to see Levine pushing himself, beyond the potentially insular world of a Sundance darling.For a lot more on Warm Bodies, check out our recent interview with Levine, where he spoke at length about adapting the Isaac Marion's novel.  Read the book synopsis after the jump.

R is a young man with an existential crisis–he is a zombie. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams. His ability to connect with the outside world is limited to a few grunted syllables, but his inner life is deep, full of wonder and longing.

After experiencing a teenage boy’s memories while consuming his brain, R makes an unexpected choice that begins a tense, awkward, and stragely sweet relationship with the victim’s human girlfriend. Julie is a blast of color in the otherwise dreary and gray landscape that surrounds R. His choice to protect her will transform not only R, but his fellow Dead, and perhaps their whole lifeless world.

Scary, funny, and surprisingly poignant, Warm Bodies explores what happens when the cold heart of a zombie is tempted by the warmth of human love. [Amazon]