It has been almost five years since the credits rolled on World War Z, and the path to the film's highly-anticipated sequel has turned into a rocky road. Zodiac director David Fincher has teased audiences with slow and steady developments since coming onboard the project as its director, but World War Z 2 has also experienced delay after delay over time. Now it looks like the movie has hit yet another setback, and it all has to do with Fincher's commitments over at Netflix, specifically with Mindhunter.
It sounds like we are going to have to keep waiting for the next stage of the World War Z storyline. Per a report from The Playlist, it seems that David Fincher's upcoming priority is the second season of Mindhunter on Netflix, and that inherently means the next installment in the zombie franchise will need to remain on the backburner, at least for now. Production on Mindhunter Season 2 is currently set to begin this fall, which suggests that the odds of seeing World War Z 2 start production before the end of the calendar year seem slim.
This is only the latest in a series of delays that have forced World War Z to pump the brakes and stay in development hell. In fact, just a month ago the project was once again forced to push itself back so Brad Pitt could sign on to Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Now, David Fincher is doing the same with his work on the second season of Mindhunter, which means the zombie blockbuster will have to continue waiting for its turn.
That's not to say that we haven't seen some progress in the World War Z world lately. Last year David Fincher addressed the status of the project and noted that "a lot of stones have been laid" as they work on building a story that takes apart the mythology of the zombie genre. Given the fact that it sounds like the script hasn't been fully locked down yet anyway, it arguably makes plenty of sense for the film's talent to go off and work on other projects in the interim.
Despite all of these delays and issues, there's still a fair case for us to make that World War Z deserves this level of slow, deliberate development. Marc Forster's original 2013 adaptation of Max Brooks' novel experienced a notoriously rocky production, with numerous elements of the story changed during reshoots -- including the film's third act, which was wholly jettisoned in favor of a smaller set piece. If World War Z 2 wants to avoid the same pitfalls and decision-changing, then it should take its time.
CinemaBlend will bring you more information related to all of the most highly-anticipated Hollywood projects as new details are made available to us. Mindhunter Season 2 will begin filming this fall and stay tuned for more information about when World War Z 2 may do the same. For now, you can keep an eye on our comprehensive movie premiere guide to stay in-the-loop on all of the biggest and best films set to premiere this year!
