Yahoo News David Fincher's canceled “World War Z” sequel would have been 'a little like “The Last of Us”'
It's been four years since Paramount canceled production on the David Fincher-directed World War Z sequel, and now the filmmaker says he's "glad" the movie never came to fruition.
In a recent interview with GQ UK, the Social Network and Seven director was asked to share details about what his zombie sequel might have looked like, and he compared it to another recent screen drama about an apocalyptic pandemic.
"Well, it was a little like The Last of Us," Fincher said, referring to the hit HBO series that premiered earlier this year. "I'm glad that we didn't do what we were doing, because The Last of Us has a lot more real estate to explore the same stuff."
He continued, "In our title sequence, we were going to use the little parasite… they used it in their title sequence, and in that wonderful opening with the Dick Cavett, David Frost-style talk show."
Jaap Buitendijk/Paramount Mireille Enos, Sterling Jerins, Abigail Hargrove, and Brad Pitt in 'World War Z'
The original World War Z hit theaters in 2013, starring Brad Pitt as a former U.N. troubleshooter who's enlisted to help stop a global zombie outbreak. After weathering a turbulent production and receiving lukewarm reviews, the Marc Forster-directed movie made more than $500 million at the worldwide box office, so a sequel seemed inevitable.
Fincher was revealed as part of the sequel's production in 2017, after it was announced that J.A. Bayona would no longer direct the project. The movie would have been a reunion between Fincher and Pitt, following collaborations on Fight Club and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. However, budget conflicts pushed Paramount to scrap the movie, and Fincher moved on to make Mank at Netflix.
Fincher didn't offer any additional details as to what the World War Z sequel might have looked like, though he was asked if the sequel might have hewed closer to the Max Brooks novel on which the first film was based. "No, no," Fincher said. "But there is some talk of doing that."
Ever a storyteller, Fincher left it on that cliffhanger.
Fincher's next film, The Killer, will have a limited theatrical release starting Friday, before hitting Netflix on Nov. 10.
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