Production on the long-gestating sequel to World War Z has now been halted indefinitely,
leaving audiences to wonder just how this huge Brad Pitt hit ended up getting stuck
in studio limbo.
Here are a few reasons why the world may never get to see World War Z 2.
As the old adage goes, you’ve got to spend money to make money — but just try telling
that to Paramount.
The Playlist reports that, although it wasn't exactly the only issue, the astronomical budget
of World War Z 2 absolutely played a role in the film's demise.
Considering the costs of special effects, shooting locations, and cast salaries, it's
easy to see how the budget for a sequel of this magnitude could skyrocket.
Reportedly, director David Fincher's team had been staffing up for a lengthy shoot,
which was to take place across five different countries — as well as a six-month stint
in Atlanta.
Even for a blockbuster project like this, that's a lot of travel for a production to
endure.
In comparison, Thor: The Dark World, the sequel to 2011's Thor, was almost entirely shot in
Iceland and England, landing it with a budget of $170 million.
“If it were easy, everyone would do it.”
When you think about just how much World War Z 2 might have cost, it’s no wonder that
Paramount got cold feet.
Brad Pitt is arguably one of the most respected actors in Hollywood, so it should come as
no surprise to find that he's typically in very high demand.
Between 2004 and 2017, he starred in at least one film every year, while also doing a lot
of work with his own production company, Plan B Entertainment.
“And cousin, business is a-boomin’”
Although Pitt has been a major supporter for a World War Z sequel, his busy schedule hasn't
exactly made it easy on the film’s production.
For a good part of 2018, he was shooting Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,
and although filming has since wrapped, that’s just one example of how Pitt's ever-changing
agenda could make it difficult for Paramount to get anything solid on the books for World
War Z 2.
In 2018, Disney/Pixar released the long-anticipated sequel for their 2004 hit, The Incredibles.
It took the creative team an astounding 14 years to finally crank out a new story for
the Parr family and their superhero antics, but it ultimately proved to be worth the wait.
Although the long wait between the first and second film worked in that particular case,
it should be considered the exception, not the rule.
A sequel to World War Z would've made the most sense if was released two to three years
after the original.
By waiting so long, many fans' memories of the film have begun to fade, and with it the
anticipation of a follow-up.
At one time, director J.A. Bayona was attached to the sequel, but Universal ended up luring
him away to make Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom instead.
At this point, it's been more than five years since World War Z hit theaters, and you have
to wonder if that's simply too long of a gap for audiences to really to care about what
happened to Gerry Lane and his family.
If you ask three friends what they thought of World War Z, you'll probably get three
different answers.
Although many of the critics' reviews were generally positive, the film only received
a 66% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 72% audience score.
While that's by no means a negative reaction, you have to assume that Paramount was hoping
for better marks on a film whose budget ended up being around $200 million.
Since reviews are relative, it's tricky to accurately pinpoint a film's popularity using
that scale.
Perhaps the best way to find a consensus is to hold it up against other films with similar
budgets.
For comparison, Titanic had a budget of $200 million, and received an 89% on Rotten Tomatoes;
while Peter Jackson's King Kong had a budget of $207 million, and received an 84%.
Avatar had a budget of $237 million, and received an 82%.
Considering that each of those films earned scores higher than 80%, you could make the
case that World War Z didn't reach its highest critical potential.
It’s also entirely possible that, after years of false starts on production, this
played a role in Paramount's decision to shut down production on World War Z 2.
After J.A. Bayona left the project in 2017, Brad Pitt pushed for his long-time collaborator,
David Fincher, to take the reins on World War Z 2.
Together, the duo's impressive resume includes Se7en, Fight Club, and The Curious Case of
Benjamin Button.
Once it became official that Fincher was on board, all signs suggested that the film was
finally gaining some traction.
However, that was not to be the case.
UPROXX reported that, while waiting for Paramount to get their stuff together, Fincher "went
and oversaw two seasons of the Netflix show Mindhunter, some of which he directed personally."
Although he hasn't directed a film since 2015's Gone Girl, Fincher has managed to stay busy
as a producer, too.
And this isn't the first time he's been linked to a major project that never happened, as
he was also attached to Disney's rumored 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea project in 2014.
Since this has now happened twice to the same director, it makes you wonder if planning
around Fincher's busy schedule was what made it difficult for World War Z 2 to get going.
In October 2010, The Walking Dead premiered, pushing stories about the undead back into
the pop culture spotlight.
The zombie craze might have hit its apex in 2013, influencing video games like Call of
Duty: Black Ops and Red Dead Redemption, as well as several movies, including Warm Bodies
and World War Z itself.
Back then, everyone seemed more than happy to prepare for the zombie apocalypse.
“Don’t say that
What?
That.
What?
The dead word.
Why not?
Because it’s ridiculous.”
But that was years ago, and times have changed.
The once-strong heartbeat of zombie popularity is now little more than a flatline, and it
really does seem like zombie mania has long since peaked.
Viewing figures on The Walking Dead are dwindling, while the 2018 zombie thriller Overlord brought
in a measly $41.7 million at the box office, despite a positive critical reception.
Who's to say that World War Z 2 wouldn't suffer a similar fate in such a zombie-hostile environment?
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