David Fincher Is ‘Glad’ the ‘World War Z’ Sequel Was Canceled: ‘The Last of Us’ Did It Better

Samantha Bergeson
·3 min read
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David Fincher is “glad” the long-gestating “World War Z” sequel was ultimately scrapped.

The “Killer” director told GQ UK that the slated “World War Z” sequel would have explored similar themes to hit HBO series “The Last of Us,” which was based off of the video game franchise of the same name.

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“Well, it was a little like ‘The Last of Us,'” Fincher said of the follow-up he planned to Marc Forster’s 2013 zombie apocalypse movie. “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.”

Fincher 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.”

“World War Z” starred Brad Pitt as a U.N. investigator amid a post-apocalyptic world. The film was an adaptation of Max Brooks’ 2006 novel and directed by Marc Foster. Lead actor Pitt produced the film, which was originally envisioned as part of a trilogy. J.A. Bayona was attached to helm the sequel before Fincher entered negotiations to direct in 2016. Production was expected to begin in 2018, but was pushed back due to Fincher’s “Mindhunter” filming.

The sequel was officially no longer in development at Paramount by 2019. Per a report at the time, Fincher was allegedly willing to direct the sequel for less than the $190 million budget of the first movie, but funding needed was still too steep for the studio. A source also claimed to The Hollywood Reporter that the Chinese government’s ban on movies featuring zombies was also a factor in Paramount pulling the plug.

When asked if the planned sequel would have been a closer retelling of the novel, Fincher said, “No, no. But there is some talk of doing that.”

Meanwhile, “The Last of Us” garnered praise from Steven Spielberg for its emotional depths bringing an action franchise to the small screen. Co-creator and co-showrunner Craig Mazin told IndieWire that the show’s central foundation is love, both romantic and between a parental figure and a child.

“To the extent that it might start to feel iterative, all I can say is it’s the problem — love is the problem,” Mazin said. “It’s the problem now. It’s the problem for all of us. And we don’t like to think of it that way, but it is. The odds are that we all will do something beautiful and sacrificial and admirable because of love. And also, all of us are going to do something terrible because of love, something destructive or violent or cruel. Because we’ve invented a word for a part of us we have no control over.”

Mazin continued, “That is what fascinates me about this world. That’s what fascinates me about the themes that were there from the game. And that’s what I thought about and think about all the time as we’re contemplating our next season. I don’t think we have to invent new themes. I think there’s a lot to be explored there.”

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