A heist movie with zombies? It’s an enticing mash-up that raises the stakes to the risks and rewards inherent in both genres. That’s the premise of Zack Snyder‘s latest film, “Army Of The Dead,” set to hit Netflix this May.
“It is a full-blown, balls-to-the-wall zombie heist movie, so it’s genre-on-genre in a great way,” Snyder recently told EW. Snyder has wanted to further explore the zombie genre since 2004’s “Dawn Of The Dead,” his take on George A. Romero‘s 1978 classic, and the debut film that first put the director on the Hollywood map. “With ‘Dawn,’ we made a zombie movie but tried to do it all the way with all of those tropes of the genre,” Snyder says. “That was so fun, so I started to think of what were other genres that story didn’t have room for. It’s this tone where you have fun with the genre, but you don’t make fun of the genre — it’s a fine line.”
Warner Bros. wasn’t keen on Snyder’s genre-on-genre concept, so “Army” sat in development hell for years before Netflix swooped in on the project. Now, thanks to Netflix head Scott Stuber‘s enthusiasm for the idea, Snyder’s stalled vision has the makings of a franchise. A prequel film to “Army” has already wrapped production, with an anime-style TV series soon to follow. Here’s the film’s official synopsis:
Following a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, a group of mercenaries takes the ultimate gamble, venturing into the quarantine zone to pull off the greatest heist ever attempted.
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“Army” stars Dave Bautista, who initially declined his role as the mercenary team leader before reading the script changed his mind. Bautista reportedly turned down a significant role in James Gunn‘s upcoming “The Suicide Squad” for a chance to work with Snyder for the first time. Along for the ride with Bautista are Ella Purnell, Ana de la Reguera, Garret Dillahunt, Raul Castillo, Omari Hardwick, Tig Nataro, and Matthias Schweighöfer.
Will “Army of the Dead” make the same cultural splash “Dawn” made over fifteen years ago? Tune in to Netflix on May 21, when the film premieres to find out. Check out the trailer below.