Tag: Army of The Dead

Posted on in News

Zack Snyder Calls ‘Planet Of The Dead’ A “Sci-Fi Actioner With Horror Elements” With Another Possible Heist Angle

Zack Snyder and Netflix will continue their working relationship with the sci-fi film Rebel Moon, which reportedly has actress Sofia Boutella (Star Trek Beyond, Atomic Blonde, Kingsmen: The Secret Service) set for the lead female role. And there a direct sequel to Army of The Dead has been greenlit and will be shot by Snyder once he finishes up on Rebel Moon.

While speaking with Variety to help promote the prequel film Army of Thieves, Snyder dished some brief details on what they’re planning to do with the animated project Army of The Dead: Lost Vegas and the direct sequel Planet of The Dead.

“Shay [Hatten] and I have been talking about the straight sequel to Army of the Dead being possibly a sci-fi actioner with horror elements. So that’s a fun genre, probably with a heist at its center.”

While Army of The Dead very much was an horror actioner, the sci-fi stuff was on the sidelines with the hint to the time loop, the Area 51 convoy and the alien origin of the zombies not being a huge focus of the first film.

The filmmaker also zeroed in on the franchise’s sci-fi elements that could continue on.

“First of all, I know exactly what I’d want to see in the sequel. We’re doing the animated series, which will come out next year. The animated series very much delves deeply into the ‘why’ of the zombie apocalypse and where the zombies come from exactly. I think the time loops, portals, doorways to other realms, things of that nature, are very much in play. So all of those clues that Dieter gives us are very much part of how we continue to spiral out the Army of the Dead universe.”

Maybe, we’ll see a new team trying to break into an Area 51 bunker?

The Area 51 and alien origin could be excellent fodder for an Aliens-inspired zombie movie, but we’ll have to wait and see what they end up doing there. I’d personally love to see the sequel barrow elements from the arcade game Area 51 (soliders fighting zombies/aliens).

SOURCE: VARIETY

Posted on in Film News, News

Zack Snyder’s ‘Army Of The Dead’ Sequel Is Titled ‘Planet Of The Dead’

Director Zack Snyder after exiting the DCEU has made a brand new creative home at Netflix with his films Army of The Dead and Army of Thieves (produced by Snyder), the next big project at Netflix is Rebel Moon. It’s a sci-fi action film based on his old Star Wars pitch that would have been inspired by Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai.

Netflix is keen on continuing the zombie franchise as well, as Snyder is attached to helm a sequel to Army of The Dead. He’s now confirmed to Inverse in an interview that it will be titled Planet of The Dead and alludes to Dieter potentially surviving the events of the last film.

“But the real adventure would be to see what happened to him when that safe door closed. Did he get killed by Zeus or not? What happened? We don’t see him die on camera, and there’s still some time left. I won’t tell you what happens in Army of the Dead 2 — aka Planet of the Dead — but let’s just say that there’s a chance Dieter survives. And there’s a chance that brush with death would have caused him to want to find a jailed Gwendoline.”

It’s interesting that the title refers to a “planet” as there is an alien aspect with Area 51 and the origins of the zombies expected to be non-Earthbound. Could the film go off-world or will the zombies simply overrun the entire plant? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

The filmmaker also gave a brief update on Rebel Moon.

“We’re just plugging away. It’s so huge and so crazy but really exciting, and I’m super excited as we get closer to sharing some art and casting because it’s all starting to come together.”

SOURCE: INVERSE

Posted on in Film News, News

Zack Snyder Will Make ‘Army Of The Dead 2’ After He Finishes ‘Rebel Moon’; Could It Explore Area 51 Or Alien Origin?

The other week it was announced that Zack Snyder would be reuniting with Netflix for his sci-fi Rebel Moon, that he plans on shooting next and is based on his old Star Wars pitch that would homage the classic samurai movie “Seven Samurai” directed by the legendary Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa.

The story is set in motion when a peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy is threatened by the armies of a tyrannical regent named Balisarius. Desperate people dispatch a young woman with a mysterious past to seek out warriors from neighboring planets to help them make a stand.

Today, it was announced that Zack Snyder and Deborah Snyder’s Stone Quarry Productions have signed a first-look deal with Netflix. The deal revealed from The Hollywood Reporter, includes Army of The Dead 2 that will be written by Shay Hatten and will shoot after Rebel Moon. Rebel Moon is said to begin shooting in 2022 with franchise early plans for sequels and spinoff installments.

We don’t know exactly how the sequel will focus on but there are some breadcrumbs our there.

The opening sequence from Army of The Dead with the military convoy transporting Zeus, seemingly gave the impression it came from Area 51 and Zack Snyder has teased the alien connection the zombies’ origin (explaining the blue glow is alien in origin). Producer Deborah Snyder spoke to IndieWire a few months back reiterating that but teased future projects could cover that angle, but tried not to exactly spoil things.

“We hint in the movie that we’re coming from Area 51, so maybe there’s a sci-fi element to it. I’m not going to say for sure, but it’s really fun to be able to do that and also to see our team when they were at the top of their game, doing the search and rescue. It’s just another bit of information. Our movie takes place after the pandemic, they’ve contained the zombies to Vegas, but we don’t really talk about where it comes from. Where did this pathogen come from? How did this all happen? And we see our team and that they had been on these rescue missions. We see some flashbacks, what they were doing, but we don’t really know more, so the anime series is a great way to find out the origin of this,” producer Deborah Snyder teased about the alien/Area 51 linkage when speaking with IndieWire.

We’ll keep our fingers crossed for aliens, martians or a huge underground facility/Area 51 in the sequel.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in News

‘Rebel Moon’: Zack Synder Brings His Old ‘Seven Samurai’ Inspired ‘Star Wars’ Film Idea To Netflix & Will Direct Next

Netflix and Zack Snyder are expanding their working relationship as The Hollywood Reporter reveals his next project will be a another genre pic for the streaming giant. He’ll direct an original sci-fi Rebel Moon, a script was penned by Snyder, Shay Hatten, and Kurt Johnstad.

The story is set in motion when a peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy is threatened by the armies of a tyrannical regent named Balisarius. Desperate people dispatch a young woman with a mysterious past to seek out warriors from neighboring planets to help them make a stand.

Rebel Moon is pretty much a reworked version of his original Star Wars pitch to Lucasfilm from back in 2012. As Snyder wanted to make a Jedi film that was inspired by the Akira Kurosawa samurai film Seven Samurai. Removing all the “Star Wars” elements to make it legally distinctive from a galaxy far far away (title is an obvious nod to Star Wars’ Rebel Alliance and the moon of Endor). He had teased back in May that idea has been transformed into another project entirely.

SEVEN SAMURAI – A samurai answers a village’s request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food. A giant battle occurs when 40 bandits attack the village.

Snyder working with Netflix back-to-back on Army of The Dead and now Rebel Moon, could suggest an overall deal with the streaming service could be in the cards for the filmmaker.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News

Zack Snyder Says His ‘Seven Samurai’ Inspired ‘Star Wars’ Movie Idea Is Being Reworked “As A Sci-Fi Thing” Outside of That Universe

In the early days of Disney acquiring Lucasfilm and the Star Wars rights, there were various reports that the studio was open to multiple film pitches from filmmakers. One of those pitches was reportedly from Army of The Dead director Zack Snyder and would have been a possible Jedi film inspired by the works of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai. Akira’s film The Hidden Fortress had been a notable inspiration to the original trilogy, so going back to those classic samurai films for ideas sort of sounded appealing at the time.

Here is how that original report from Vulture described the project back in 2013, alluding to the project being an anthology project similar to things like Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Solo: A Star Wars Story.

He is in fact developing a Star Wars project for Lucasfilm that is set within the series’ galaxy, though parallel to the next trilogy. It will be an as-yet-untitled Jedi epic loosely based on Akira Kurosawa’s 1954 classic Seven Samurai, with the ronin and katana being replaced by the Force-wielding knights and their iconic lightsabers.

If you’re unfamiliar with the iconic Japanese film, it follows a group of ronin (former samurai that no longer serve a master/lord) that come together to save a poor village of farmers against relentless bandits in an attempt to restore their honor. Seven Samurai was famously remade as the equally popular Hollywood western, The Magnificent Seven.

The project ultimately wasn’t made and Snyder instead established the DCEU with Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and Justice League. However, Snyder has confirmed to the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via The Playlist) that he indeed was trying to get that project going at Lucasfilm (prior to the Disney acquisition) but has instead pivoted to rework the idea as something else outside of the Star Wars universe, but will still be set within the science-fiction genre.

SNYDER: “We talked about it, but it never [happened]. I’ve been working on it away from the ‘Star Wars’ universe, on my own, as a sci-fi thing…It’s still a sci-fi thing. It’s the same story. Now, I’m just going to let ‘Star Wars’ be ‘Star Wars.’”

“The 11-year-old me still wants to make that, and now, I know how to. So, maybe we’ll see that someday.”

Could Netflix end up giving Zack Snyder the money to make the project? It’s possible as the streaming giant is keen on continuing the working relationship with the filmmaker as they build a franchise around his zombie film Army of The Dead, after Warner Bros. passed on it.

SOURCE: HAPPY SAD CONFUSED PODCAST

Posted on in Film News

Producer Deborah Snyder Says They’re “Ready To Go” If Netflix Wants An ‘Army of The Dead’ Sequel

[MAJOR SPOILERS FOR ARMY OF THE DEAD AHEAD]

Netflix and Zack Snyder are going full-franchise with Army of The Dead as the first film was released last week and seems like it’ll be a big hit for the streaming service which releases mostly iffy-to-average original films. The film takes place mostly after a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas has been contained and a group is to put together to heist $200 million from a casino vault before the U.S. government drops a nuke on the city.

In my opinion, Army of The Dead is one of the more cinematic films made specifically for Netflix and the company knows what they have in their hands as they’ve shot a prequel film Army of Thieves and are working on an anime series called Army of The Dead: Lost Vegas with a handful of returning characters.

The main film ended on a bit of a cliffhanger as Omari Hardwick’s Vanderohe’s escapes the nuclear blast to charter a private plane to Mexico City only to realize he’s turning into a zombie. If he is an Alpha Zombie, it could easily lead directly into a solid sequel set in Mexico taking the genre outside of the United States, which doesn’t regularly happen with western takes on the genre. Producer Deborah Snyder teased a potential sequel while speaking with Indie Wire, as Snyder suggests that Zack Snyder and screenwriter Shay Hatten already have ideas for another film and are “ready to go” if Netflix wants to make it.

DEBORAH SNYDER:  “You always want the version that you’re doing to be as good as it can be, but I think there’s still more story to tell, and I know that Zack and Shay have a lot of ideas that are kind of fleshed out. If there was an appetite for another film, I think we’re ready to go.”

The producer also gave some insight into the prequel film Army of Thieves mentioning the project focused on Matthias Schweighofer’s Ludwig Dieter is similar to The Italian Job, adding it’s a romantic comedy heist film.

SNYDER: “It stands alone, and [while] you could watch it because it’s the history of our safecracker, it’s also just this really sweet, funny film,” she said. “It’s set in our same timeline, but it’s not like a zombie movie. … It’s more like ‘The Italian Job,’ but it takes place in a world where these zombies exist in America and it’s causing instability in the banking institutions. They’re moving money around, so it’s the perfect opportunity for a heist.”

Will the anime Army of The Dead: Lost Vegas, led by Joe Manganiello as Rose, explore the origins of the zombie pathogen and that tease to Area 51? Well, Deborah seems to be giving the impression it just might.

SNYDER: “We hint in the movie that we’re coming from Area 51, so maybe there’s a sci-fi element to it. I’m not going to say for sure, but it’s really fun to be able to do that and also to see our team when they were at the top of their game, doing the search and rescue. It’s just another bit of information.”

“Our movie takes place after the pandemic, they’ve contained the zombies to Vegas, but we don’t really talk about where it comes from. Where did this pathogen come from? How did this all happen? And we see our team and that they had been on these rescue missions. We see some flashbacks, what they were doing, but we don’t really know more, so the anime series is a great way to find out the origin of this.”

I’m kind of curious if they’ll attempt to connect the zombies to aliens or Mars, which might lead to some interesting sci-fi spinoffs potentially off-world alongside expanding upon this universe as having more threats other than zombies being hidden away at Area 51 and Zeus is simply just one that got out.

It sounds like we’ll have plenty of Army of The Dead content for years to come.

SOURCE: INDIE WIRE

Posted on in Review

REVIEW: ‘Army of The Dead’ Brings Director Zack Snyder Back To His Horror Roots & Knocks It Out The Park

With a budget of $90 million Army of The Dead is easily one of the most expensive zombie films ever to be made (World War Z’s $190 million budget taking the top spot) and dwarfs what Universal spent on Snyder’s first entry into the genre, the 2004 Dawn of The Dead remake that cost the studio $26 million to make. Army of The Dead looks more expensive than previous Netflix original films where you can see a lot of the money spent directly on sets and special effects, rather than bloated salaries, a growing issue with these streaming originals. 

The large budget is warranted in this case given the scale Zack Snyder was attempting and for the most part Albuquerque, New Mexico does a nice job of doubling for Las Vegas or at least a ruined version of it. Snyder is acting as his own director of photography (there is a cheeky nod to cinematographer Larry Fong if you can spot it) and manages to make the horror film look great despite some shots that are a little too dark during a few dialog scenes. 

Army of The Dead focuses on a team of gruff hired-guns assembled to break into a vault filled with cash, the only problem is that Las Vegas has been walled-off and is full of zombies, alongside even more dangerous incarnations referred to as Alphas. It’s plot is as basic as it gets but the simplistic nature actually benefits their attempts to create a different type of zombie cinematic universe because they can fill in gaps along the way.

The action is what you might expect from Snyder, however, folks unfamiliar with the slow-burn of a zombie movie might have issues with some of the slower moments when it’s an action film with a runtime of almost two and half hours. However, it allows a lot of the characters to get moments beyond shooting and running. Some highlights for me on the action front were the shootout on the casino floor and the Alpha Zombie introduction with the military convoy. 

The actors do their part for the most part but don’t expect Shakespeare-level performances, the banter is interesting enough, but it’s nice to see Dave Bautista in a decent leading role that doesn’t feel forced or a miscasting. I also have to say seeing Dave in a larger role instead of the comedic relief was refreshing and I can’t really blame him for choosing this project over The Suicide Squad. Tig Notaro might really be the only real standout in the supporting cast and manages to bring some much needed levity in bite-sized moments.

Junkie XL’s score helps build tension, an element that Zack’s superhero movies were lacking, having the characters hump gasoline on their backs felt like a good choice to give the extra element of danger outside of the zombies, it also has a small payoff.

Any genre movie buff can point out the nods to stuff like Mad Max, Aliens, Terminator, 28 Weeks Later, Day of The Dead, Land of The Dead, Return of The Living Dead, Return of The Living Dead II, World War Z, Indiana Jones, Ocean’s Eleven, Zombieland: Double Tap, Predators, and Riddick. Pulling the interesting elements from those films seems to work for the most part and doesn’t feel overworn, generic, or outdated which had been a problem for a while with zombie films and projects that attempt to mash together existing stuff normally end up feeling like fan films. 

The inclusion of the Alpha Zombies is a neat element and there is enough new stuff there to add to the zombie lore, it feels like Snyder and his writing team retooling things we’ve already seen with “smart zombies,” a concept explored by George A. Romero in Day of The Dead and the rarely mentioned Land of The Dead. 

I wasn’t thrilled with the obvious twist we saw a mile away and the ending could have been a little more impactful but the rest of the movie makes up for it. It’s the most coherent Zack Snyder film in years and it’s the kind film that got me into him originally back with Dawn of The Dead, it’s legit fun and knows what it is from the start. I’m happy to see Zack Snyder back to making original films again and want to see him continue this streak, hopefully, making stuff beyond Army of The Dead sequels as well. 

Snyder knew what he was making from the start and ended up giving us a pretty damn good zombie flick.

Netflix is banking on Army of The Dead becoming a franchise and the world-building is pretty good for the most part despite the aspect that we see zombies outside of Las Vegas but it’s not addressed how things are still functioning, perhaps, other material will explain this in more in-depth. 

I’m sure if you’re reading this you were going to watch it regardless but I do have to recommend it because it might be the best Netflix original film I’ve watched that has attempted to recreate a theatrical release’s experience. Army of The Dead feels like a movie, not an extended episode, something that has been an issue for me with previous films from Netflix. After the lack of action films during the pandemic, it’s sort of refreshing to see one that was executed so well on a technical level. 

ARMY OF THE DEAD – 8.5/10

Posted on in Film News

Dave Bautista Turned Down ‘The Suicide Squad’ To Make A Lot More Money & Work With Zack Snyder On ‘Army of The Dead’

Dave Bautista isn’t automatically thought of as a leading man despite leading a handful of projects in the past, but he’s aiming to branch-out from his intimidating supporting roles with his upcoming action-horror flick Army of The Dead, directed by Zack Snyder.

He was originally offered a role in James Gunn’s R-rated DC Comics film The Suicide Squad but reveals to Digital Spy in a recent interview the reasons he decided to do Army of The Dead instead. Those coming down to a bigger role, a lot more money, building a professional relationship with streaming giant Netflix and getting to work with Zack.

BAUTISTA: “James Gunn wrote a role for me in The Suicide Squad, which I was all fired up about, not only because he was making a huge comeback. He’s come back with The Suicide Squad and was rehired by Marvel, and has really been vindicated as far as that whole thing went. I was all up for it, and then I got Army of the Dead, which was not only a lead role for me, but also I really wanted to work with Zack Snyder. I’ve been wanting to work with him for years.”

“I had The Suicide Squad where I got to work with my boy again, even though it’s a smaller role, and then I had Army of the Dead on which I get to work with Zack, I get to build a relationship with Netflix, I get a lead role in a great film – and I get paid a lot more money. I had to call James, and I told him, ‘It breaks my heart, because as a friend, I want to be there with you, but professionally, this is the smart decision for me.'”

You can’t really blame Bautista to make a career move like that to give himself bigger exposure with a leading role over another supporting role.

The film stars Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Ana de la Reguera, Matthias Schweighöfer, Nora Arnezeder, Hiroyuki Sanada, Raúl Castillo, Michael Cassidy, Tig Notaro, and Garret Dillahunt.

Army of The Dead will be released on Netflix May 21 and in select theaters on May 14.

ARMY OF THE DEAD – After a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, a group of mercenaries takes the ultimate gamble by venturing into the quarantine zone for the greatest heist ever.

SOURCE: DIGITAL SPY

Posted on in Film News

Dave Bautista Reveals He Had Meeting About Playing DC Comics Villain Bane

Could we end up seeing Guardians of The Galaxy actor Dave Bautista join the cast of a DC Comics film in the future? According to Dave, he’s been actively trying to get his foot in the door recently.

While speaking during Justice Con (via Screen Rant), the wrestler turned actor revealed he had met with Warner Bros./DC about playing Batman villain Bane, but the studio apparently was shocked about his request as they weren’t even actively casting the role. It remains to be seen if he’ll ultimately play the character but you can’t get the impression he was passionate about trying to land it.

BAUTISTA: “Oh, it would be Bane all day long. I’ve made no secret about this. I want to play Bane so bad I went to Warner Bros., had an appointment with them, had an appointment with DC, walked in the door and said, ‘I want to play Bane.’ I’m not kidding. They were a little like ‘Woah, we’re not even casting Bane.’ I was like ‘I don’t care, I’m playing him.'”

Bane is traditionally a Batman villain and we don’t really know the next time we’ll see him on the big screen as Matt Reeves is currently overseeing the new Batman trilogy starring Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne and it’s unclear if he plans to introduce Bane anytime soon. Something like the Suicide Squad franchise might be a project where Bane could have popped-up without the need to have him interacting with Batman.

The most notable version of Bane was Tom Hardy’s incarnation featured as the League of Shadows leader in The Dark Knight Rises directed by Christopher Nolan.

Dave Bautista’s next big project will be Zack Snyder’s Army of The Dead which will be released on May 14, 2021, and is still expected to return for James Gunn’s Guardians of The Galaxy 3.

ARMY OF THE DEAD – After a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, a group of mercenaries takes the ultimate gamble by venturing into the quarantine zone for the greatest heist ever.

SOURCE: JUSTICE CON

Posted on in Features

Netflix Should Offer Zack Snyder Their ‘Conan The Barbarian’ Reboot

It was recently suggested by WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff in an interview with Variety that they don’t have plans to continue or restore the Snyderverse. Which means that Zack Snyder is finally free to make all the wacky film ideas he’s been cooking up over the last decade. He’s talked about making action film about George Washington and taking a crack at the Arthurian legend.

What’s interesting is that he’s now established a working relationship with streaming giant Netflix with his upcoming action-horror flick Army of The Dead, that is coming out on May 21, 2021.

This could mean that Snyder and Netflix will continue working on stuff in the future potentially leading to an over-all development deal at some point.

There is a newly acquired IP at the streamer that feels tailor-made for the filmmaker. As Netflix got their hands on the film and television rights to Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan The Barbarian last year. The character has multiple stories written by Howard and other writers that continued Conan’s adventures over the decades including folks like Wheel of Time’s Robert Jordan.

In my opinion, there is really only one solid live-action adaptation and that is the fantastic John Milius movie from 1982 that starred Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Earl Jones. The film got made thanks in part to the books popularity in the 1970’s and the string of comic books that were published by Marvel Comics.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN (1982) – Orphaned boy Conan (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is enslaved after his village is destroyed by the forces of vicious necromancer Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), and is compelled to push “The Wheel of Pain” for many years. Once he reaches adulthood, Conan sets off across the prehistoric landscape of the Hyborian Age in search of the man who killed his family and stole his father’s sword. With beautiful warrior Valeria (Sandahl Bergman) and archer Subotai (Gerry Lopez), he faces a supernatural evil.

I have to assume given Zack’s obsession with John Boorman’s Excalibur that something like Conan The Barbarian might also be a fantasy film that resonates with him and could be an established IP that Netflix could offer Snyder.

We’ve seen with 300 that Zack could bring something visually interesting to a mature fantasy adventure epic like Conan The Barbarian. At it’s core, the 300 comic from Frank Miller and the Zack Snyder film owes a lot to things like Conan.

The world of Conan can be a blank canvas for someone like Snyder to develop something into his own and Netflix isn’t likely going to micromanage because box office isn’t even a factor with their originals as streaming is a complete different. You can tell with his DC stuff that he’s itching to tackle something like this.

The less said about Jason Momoa’s 2011 Conan reboot the better. Since then, the actor has developed a more charismatic on-screen persona with stuff like Game of Thrones and taking on the Aquaman role. I wouldn’t be opposed to giving Jason another shot at playing Conan given that he’s grown as an actor and has an existing relationship with Snyder.

Anyways, I’m hopefully that Netflix’s interest with expanding Snyder’s Army of The Dead into their own franchise means that they’ll at least consider him for other stuff like Conan The Barbarian as it feels like it could be a good fit for him.