For a movie that has yet to be released, Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead is doing pretty well for itself. So well, in fact, that the brand has already locked down a prequel and an anime series to be produced for Netflix in addition to the film. Though the upcoming movie doesn't even have a release date yet, Snyder was excited to announce additional partnerships, and seems to view Army of the Dead as an IP with great potential.
The main film is being produced by Zack Snyder and his outfit The Stone Quarry, and was initially planned as a sequel to 2004's Dawn of the Dead before the rights were acquired by Netflix. Writing on the prequel film and anime series will be done by Shay Hatten, who is also one of the writers on the main film. Matthias Schweighöfer will reprise his role from Army of the Dead in the prequel film, and the anime, titled Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas, will reportedly follow the origin story of Dave Bautista's character, with several actors from the film, including Bautista, returning to voice their characters.
Snyder and his cast report having a great deal of faith in the project. As the news of the additional projects broke, Schweighöfer added: “It has already been a great pleasure to be part of this wonderful ensemble around Zack Synder — a fascinating project. I am happy that it is now being developed on so many different levels.” It does seem to be one of the more original zombie movies in recent years, with Snyder describing a plot that lies somewhere between zombie action and heist movie.
His pitch goes something like this: “A zombie plague hits Vegas, and they’re able to contain the virus to the city… they build a wall out of shipping containers. And then the city falls. And six years later, one of the casino owners hires this group of zombie soldiers to go get his money that he left in a safe in the casino.” Despite all this development, and the fact that the movie is set for a 2021 release, Snyder has yet to release a trailer or even much detail beyond the basic summary. At the very least, it seems he and Netflix have confidence in the project, and that bodes well for the final product. If audiences do respond well, they can settle in for quite a bit more content from this IP.
Army of the Dead is set to release sometime in 2021.
Source: Variety