World War Z 2 has been in the works ever since its 2013 predecessor earned decent reviews and collected $540 million worldwide. However, the movie has been struggling to be made, and now just like the first World War Z movie, it's been delayed. With only five months to go until its intended release, Paramount announced yesterday that World War Z 2 had been removed from the schedule, with no replacement date in sight yet. Given that the sequel hadn't even begun shooting, that's reason enough for a delay, but there has also reportedly been a weird holdup for Paramount not hiring director David Fincher.
Last year, David Fincher was rumored to be in consideration to helm World War Z 2, and according to a source who spoke with THR, he's apparently is "very creatively interested in directing the movie." For a while, Fincher was planning to work with writer Dennis Kelly on the sequel, and the man behind movies like The Social Network and Gone Girl was even planning on making the movie with a budget less than what World War Z had. Because Skydance Productions is co-producing and co-financing the movie, that lessens the financial risk even more. However, Paramount has been "dragging its heels" on a deal with Fincher, with studio head Brad Grey supposedly not ready to green-light the sequel. If Fincher were to be hired, he would reunite with Brad Pitt, the two of them previously working together on Se7en and Fight Club.
Long before David Fincher was even remotely associated with World War Z 2, A Monster Calls' J.A. Bayona was tapped to direct the flick, but by January 2016, he dropped out. Later that year, Bayona, who is now directing Jurassic World 2, revealed that the reason he left was because Paramount wasn't giving him enough time to prepare, and he didn't want to be hurried. Honestly, it's baffling why Paramount hasn't pulled the trigger and officially brought Fincher onto the zombie horde sequel, either now or within the past six months. The man is one of the most critically acclaimed directors in Hollywood, he wants to make World War Z for less money than the original and he's clearly enthusiastic about this project. With him helming World War Z 2, there's a good chance it could be one of those rare sequels that's better than its predecessor. If Paramount's wise, they'll hopefully reconsider their position and secure Fincher as soon as possible.
As it stands now, Paramount is reportedly hoping to release World War Z 2 by 2018 or 2019, but that's not guaranteed to happen. We'll keep you updated on how World War Z 2 is progressing as more updates come in, but let us know how you'd feel about David Fincher leading the charge on the sequel in the comments below.
