After spending time away from filmmaking after a family tragedy, The Hollywood Reporter has revealed director Zack Snyder is officially returning with Army of the Dead, a zombie action thriller set for Netflix.
Army of the Dead takes place in a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, during which a man assembles a group of mercenaries to take the ultimate gamble, venturing into the quarantined zone to pull off the greatest heist ever attempted.
Snyder came up with the film’s story while Joby Harold (King Arthur: Legend of the Sword) has written the script. Snyder will produce with his partner and wife Deborah Snyder and Wesley Coller through their newly rebranded production company, Stone Quarry. This marks a return for Snyder to the zombie genre after his 2004 feature debut Dawn of the Dead.
“There are no handcuffs on me at all with this one,” Snyder told THR. “I thought this was a good palate cleanser to really dig in with both hands and make something fun and epic and crazy and bonkers in the best possible way. I love to honor canon and the works of art, but this is the opportunity to find a purely joyful way to express myself though a genre. It will be the most kick-ass, self-aware — but not in a wink-to-the-camera way — balls-to-the-wall zombie freakshow that anyone has ever seen. No one’s ever let me completely loose [like this].”
The film had been over at Warner Bros. since 2007, but Netflix sought the project and bought it from the studio. Filming will begin this summer with a very high budget that could potentially reach $90 million.
Aside from getting back to work on a film of his very own, Snyder expressed excitement over getting back behind the camera as well: “When the movie gets super big, you get pushed away from the camera. And in the last few years I’ve had a reconnection with photography. This movie will be a chance to get the camera in hand.”
What do you think about Snyder’s return? Are you excited to see Zack Snyder making another zombie film? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @FlickeringMyth…
