The fate of Paramount’sWorld War Z 2has been left up in the air for the past few months, after the studio pulled thezombie sequelfrom its release schedule and delayed the movie indefinitely. A lot has changed between now and then, with the studio getting a new CEO in Jim Gianopulos, with sources claiming that Paramount is closing in on a deal with directorDavid Fincherto take the helm and direct. The studio hasn’t issued an official green light for the sequel yet, but that is expected to happen in the weeks ahead.
Varietyreports that Paramount is eyeing a production start in the first quarter of 2018, although the studio hasn’t announced any release plans thus far. We first reported aboutDavid Fincher’s potential involvement back in August, with producer/starBrad Pittreportedly “zeroing in” on David Fincher as his top choice to direct the sequel. However, plans for this project were pushed back due to Brad Pitt’s divorce with Angelina Jolie. After then-CEO Brad Grey indefinitely delayed the sequel, most had wondered if it would ever come to fruition, but that has changed now that Jim Gianapulos has taken over.
Back in February, a source revealed that David Fincher “really wants to direct"Brad Pittin this movie, which would reunite the actor and director for a fourth time, following their work onSe7en,Fight Cluband most recentlyThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button. It would also mark a return to the big screen for the director, who hasn’t made a film since 2014’sGone Girl, although he has been keeping busy on the small screen, producing and directing Netflix’sHouse of CardsandMindhunters, while developing a number of other TV projects such asUtopia. If a deal is finalized, this would also mark a rare sequel for the director.
After cutting his teeth directing a number of music videos, such as Madonna’s Express Yourself, Aerosmith’s Janey’s Got a Gun and many more,David Finchermade his directorial debut with 20th Century Fox’sAlien 3, the studio’s much-maligned sci-fihorror sequelthat was widely panned by critics. The filmmaker has reportedly been wary of sequels ever since then, but he has always been open to any ideas brought to him byBrad Pitt. The director and star almost worked together on a remake of20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, but it never materialized.
This project would also mark a reunion forDavid FincherandJim Gianopulos, who gave his last feature filmGone Girlthe green light when he was the CEO at 20th Century Fox. The script forWorld War Z 2has been worked on bySteven Knight(Eastern Promises), withDennis Kelly(Black Sea) providing a rewrite, but it isn’t known if another writer will be brought on board. The originalWorld War Z, which starredBrad Pitt,Mireille Enos,James Badge DaleandMatthew Fox, earned $202.3 million domestically and $540 million worldwide, from a $190 million production budget.
