Netflix seems to be rethinking their Zack Snyder deal as news has emerged that the streamer is halting all work on any Army of the Dead spinoff projects.
The news comes courtesy of What's On Netflix [via The Wrap].
Back in 2021, Snyder signed a first-look deal with Netflix, that has led to several projects, including 2021's Army of the Dead, its prequel- Army of Thieves, Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, and Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver.
Next up, is the upcoming Norse mythology animated series, Twilight of the Gods.
But moving back to the Army of the Dead franchise, Snyder clearly had big plans for the IP, which was a big hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, where many Americans were forced to remain indoors. At the time, the zombie film debuted to impressive viewership numbers, entering the top 10 list of most-watched Netflix Original movies.
The film ended with a clear signal that there was more story to tell as it seemed inevitable that the zombie outbreak would extend beyond the Las Vegas boundary. A short while late, a sequel film was confirmed to be in development, titled Planet of the Dead, along with an anime/animated prequel, titled Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas.
Back in 2023, Snyder confirmed that Lost Vegas was dead in the water, despite the fact that all of the voice recording and animatics were complete.
Said Snyder, "We did all the scripts and the animatics, and all the voices are recorded. So you could watch it, even in its crazy animatic form – you can watch the whole run."
Now, it looks like any work on Planet of the Dead has been halted, as well.
"We are very ambitious with everything," Snyder told The Wrap.
Snyder's big-budget Rebel Moon films and their extended, director's cuts have been universally derided by fans and critics, alike. This has likely led to Netflix reevaluating its overall deal with Snyder.
Snyder may also be looking to reevaluate the deal, as he's attached to produce and potentially direct a 300 prequel television series for Warner Bros. However, he also recently revealed that he wants his next project after Twilight of the Gods to be a small film, with no VFX.