Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead franchise is growing at Netflix

Zack Snyder fans can look forward to a lot of Netflix content as the director of Watchmen, 300 and Man of Steel expands his Army of the Dead universe.

Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead came out on Netflix earlier this year. It quickly became one of the most viewed originals by streamers. It was Snyder’s first return to the zombie genre since his debut film Dawn of the Dead in 2004. Interestingly, an Easter Egg in Army of the Dead actually suggests that the film is set in the same reality as Dawn of the Dead.

Army of the Dead was a lot of fun, if a little silly at times. With great gigs – including the very welcome last-minute involvement of Tig Notaro -, some gnarled zombie effects, and a fun, cross-genre premise, Army felt just fresh enough while delivering familiar merchandise.

However, it is more than a single film. Army of the Dead was the first part of a franchise that will include a prequel film and an anime series.

Here’s what we know so far about Netflix’s Army of the Dead saga.

warning: The following post contains some important details about the plot of Army of the Dead.

What is Army of the Dead?

Army of the Dead is the franchise’s first standalone project. It is a feature film directed by Zack Snyder and written by Snyder, Shay Hatten and Joby Harold.

The film follows a group of mercenaries led by Scott (Dave Bautista) who band together to carry out a robbery in Las Vegas.

The catch? Vegas is now a quarantine zone after a zombie outbreak. The government keeps the zombie threat at bay in Vegas behind massive walls. And to make matters even more complicated, the government plans to bomb the whole city to end the zombie threat.

That means Scott has to quickly assemble his team, get in, steal a fair amount of cash from a safe, and get out. The safe is not guarded and the insurance has already covered the loss, so nobody is watching the money. But they won’t just leave those pesky zombies around without a fight.

What’s next in the Army of the Dead franchise?

If you’ve seen Army of the Dead you know it ends with the promise of more zombies. Blowing up Las Vegas didn’t help, and now the zombie infection is on.

So far, Netflix has not announced any sequels that might investigate where the zombie plague could be headed. But the Army of the Dead franchise has two projects ahead of it.

First is Army of Thieves, a prequel film that follows one of the mercenaries who infiltrated Vegas in Army of the Dead. Outstanding in the first film was the German safe cracker Ludwig Dieter, played by Matthias Schweighöfer.

It looks like Army of Thieves will be some kind of origin story for Dieter, set in the early days of the zombie outbreak. A mysterious woman recruits Dieter, a small town bank clerk, to join a crew of Interpol’s most wanted criminals. The crew embarks on a robbery and commits almost impossible thefts across Europe.

Schweighöfer plays the leading role and directs Army of Thieves for Netflix based on a script by Shay Hatten. Next to him on the screen is Game of Thrones and F9 star Nathalie Emmanuel.

In addition to Army of Thieves, the Army of the Dead franchise will also feature an anime series. Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas will accompany the mercenary crew from the first movie in the early days of the zombie outbreak.

Snyder will direct two episodes of Lost Vegas, with Jay Oliva directing show running and two more episodes directing.

Dave Bautista, Ana de la Reguera, Tig Notaro, Omari Hardwick and Ella Purnell will repeat their roles from Army of the Dead in the anime series.

Are there zombies in Army of Thieves?

One big question that was left open when the Army of the Dead prequel was announced was, will there be zombies?

Dieter wasn’t used to fighting zombies in Army of the Dead, so his central role here is a red flag for anyone hoping for more fun zombie killing. A poster unveiled last week had the slogan, “More safes. Fewer Zombies, ”which gives the impression that Army of Thieves is jumping out of the zombie genre more firmly into the territory of the Heist film. Or maybe it would abandon the undead altogether.

Now, with a new teaser posted at San Diego Comic-Con over the weekend, we have more clarity.

With reference to the “America Outbreak” and zombie-plague news footage, the film is clearly set after shooting the people. But since the film is set in Europe, the zombie semi-apocalypse doesn’t seem to play too much of a role. It’s part of the bigger world the film exists in, but probably not a big part of the narrative.

However, it looks like the aftermath of the zombie outbreak will be global. For example, it can be used as a cover for a robbery. While authorities focus on preventing the spread of zombieism and financial institutions fret about the impact on the economy, a thief team may find it easier to get to work.

When do all these things come out?

Army of the Dead premiered worldwide on Netflix on May 21st. Netflix has yet to set release dates for Army of Thieves or Lost Vegas, but Army of Thieves is “coming soon,” according to the streamer.

In addition, it is unclear whether the Army of the Dead universe will continue to expand.

Given the loose ties between Army of the Dead and Army of Thieves, it’s easy to imagine other stories that are vaguely set in the same universe.

Cloverfield spawned two almost unrecognizable spin-offs that happened to take place during the events of the original 2008 film. There’s no reason Army of the Dead couldn’t do the same.

More Zack Snyder on Netflix

Outside of Army of the Dead, director / producer Zack Snyder works for Netflix.

Snyder recently retired from serving as one of the architects of the DC superhero cinema universe for Warner Bros. At Warner, Snyder directed Man of Steel, Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League.

The latter was plagued by re-shoots and eventually completed (and dramatically changed) by director Joss Whedon after the death of Snyder’s daughter. After fan outcry – sometimes turning into online abuse – Warner gave the go-ahead for Zack Snyder’s Justice League, which bowed to HBO Max earlier this year and is known among fans as “The Snyder Cut”.

Now, with DC superheroes (likely) behind them, Snyder and his production company Stone Quarry seem to be pushing the streamer at full steam. In addition to Army of the Dead and its spin-offs, prequels, and possible sequels, he’s signed an entirely separate project with Netflix: Rebel Moon.

On Rebel Moon, Snyder will team up with Army of the Dead co-writer Shay Hatten. It tells the story of a young woman trying to recruit warriors to defend her home planet when an evil tyrant invades the peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy.

In 1977, Star Wars was based on Akira Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress. Now, with this intergalactic allusion to Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai in Rebel Moon, Snyder appears to be diving into the same well.

We’ll keep you informed when Netflix announces more projects.