With Resident Evil hitting cinemas today, The Last Of Us back in the news cycle in recent weeks, and spooky season well and truly upon us, we’ve had zombies on the brain here at Empire HQ. And clearly the top brass at Paramount have been feeling the same, as THR has today dropped the unexpected but not at all unwelcome news that a sequel to Marc Forster’s 2013 zombie movie World War Z is finally moving forwards at the studio. What’s more, not only is Brad Pitt returning, but he’s also bringing Oscar-nominated Conclave director Edward Berger with him.
Per THR‘s reporting, Pitt is set to topline World War Z‘s long-gestating sequel, reprising the role of UN-worker-turned-zombie-staving-savant Gerry Lane. Berger, who is currently in post-production on Pitt starring psychological thriller The Riders, is set to direct from a screenplay by Matilda musical book and Utopia writer Dennis Kelly. How exactly a sequel will look — especially given the first movie’s contagion breakthrough climax and seeming somewhat happy ending — is anyone’s guess, with many having tried and ultimately failed to deliver the blockbuster zombie money-spinner’s next chapter over the last 13 years. (Lest we forget, J.A. Bayona was on board for the follow-up in 2013 off the back of The Impossible, with David Fincher then eyeing a Pitt reunion in 2018 after Bayona dropped out.)
Loosely based on Max Brooks’ bestselling book World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, the original World War Z movie had its own rocky road to our screens, famously undergoing a full third-act rewrite and reshoot as its budget ballooned to a still eye-watering $200+ million back in 2013. Thankfully, the film landed as both a critical and commercial success, taking a cool $540 million at the global box office. Now, with zombies once again ruling our screens, a killer director-writer duo in place, and Hollywood experiencing a real theatrical boom of late, perhaps finally — finally! — now really is the right time to bring the undead blockbuster back to life. Watch this space!
