World War Z came out seven years ago and it’s been almost as long since Paramount were said to be working on a sequel.
The zombie movie, based on the novel of the same name by Max Brooks, was a surprise hit at the box office with more than $500 million worldwide. The appetite was clearly there for a sequel, so why hasn’t it happened yet?
[external_link_head]Perhaps it’ll just be like the first movie and a troubled development phase will eventually lead to an actual sequel happening. However, we hate to say it, but it looks like it’s a distant possibility right now.
Paramount
But don’t completely lose hope! Co-producer Jeremy Kleiner said in January 2020 that a sequel could become a reality “someday”.
“We love Max Brooks’ book. We love the universe of it. It doesn’t feel like the World War Z is done and over with,” he explained, which is vague enough to leave us hopeful that it’s World War Z 2 could happen one day.
When that day is remains to be seen, but like the zombies in the movie, the sequel could rise from the dead and if it does, it would have had a lengthy journey to the screen.
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World War Z 2 release date: Has World War Z 2 been cancelled?
Paramount
[external_link offset=1]At one point the sequel was scheduled for release in 2017, but that time came and went without production even having begun.
Shooting was then expected to begin in autumn 2018 after it was pushed back thanks to Brad Pitt signing up for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Another delay soon followed – caused by director David Fincher’s work on Mindhunter season two – and that meant that shooting was going to begin in June 2019 instead, with that date later moved forward to March.
But then came the news that the sequel was delayed yet again as Paramount has halted pre-production on the sequel, reportedly because China – one of the world’s biggest movie markets – has a ban on zombie movies, making a sequel a risky prospect.
So as of right now, the sequel is deader than a zombie that’s been shot in the head, but you never know, it might still be reanimated in the future.
World War Z 2 cast: Who’s in World War Z 2?
Paramount
If the sequel does happen, Brad Pitt is on board to reprise his starring role as former United Nations investigator and intrepid zombie fighter Gerry Lane, but maybe that’ll change depending on when or if a filming date is confirmed.
In May 2016, Mireille Enos confirmed that she would return as his wife, Karin Lane. It’s not clear where things stand almost four years later and, unsurprisingly, no other casting has been announced.
World War Z 2 plot: What’s World War Z 2 going to be about?
Paramount
The first movie was only loosely based on the bestselling novel of the same name by writer Max Brooks (the son of Anne Bancroft and Mel Brooks, FYI), so predicting the plot of the sequel is a tricky business.
The globe-trotting original movie ended with a glimmer of hope for mankind’s survival against the undead hordes, but as Gerry Lane says at the end of the film, there’s still much left to be done.
The novel, whose story spans the globe and stretches into a political future much changed by the zombie pandemic, offers plenty of material for the filmmakers to draw on.
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
[external_link offset=2]“A lot of stones have been laid,” said Fincher in November 2017. “We’re just deconstructing it right now against the mythology that exists to see where we can go.”
As they left it, the remnants of mankind had discovered how to pass “unseen” among the infected – by infecting themselves with fatal but curable diseases – but the world remained overrun.
In World War Z 2 we’d expect to see the fightback begin, but whether that fightback ever actually starts remains to be seen…
World War Z 2 trailer: Is there a World War Z 2 trailer yet?
Just in case it wasn’t clear enough earlier, the sequel hasn’t been greenlit yet, let alone started filming to get a trailer for it.
We’re sure that if it ever does start filming, we’ll get some footage if only to prove it’s actually happening.
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