Why Army of the Dead’s future is live and kicking

Two spin-offs are already in the late stages of production and likely to release later this year, while speculation is already brewing that director Zack Snyder could return to helm a sequel to his creature feature.

If you're intrigued to know what the world of Army of the Dead has in store, you've come to the right place. Below, you can find details on all the confirmed and rumoured projects on the way.

Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas (confirmed)

Release date: TBC

The world of Army of the Dead will be fleshed out in this animated prequel series, which will go back to the peak of the zombie conflict and explore how the members of Scott Ward's team first crossed paths.

Most of the original Army of the Dead cast are returning to voice their film roles, including Dave Bautista and Ella Purnell as father-daughter duo Scott and Kate Ward, as well as Ana de la Reguera (Cruz), Omari Hardwick (Vanderohe) and Tig Notaro (Peters).

De la Reguera told RadioTimes.com and other press: "I'm excited about it because a lot of the little hints here and there you're gonna understand better if you watch the movie again. I think it's gonna be sexier, I'll use that word because I can't reveal much, but it's going to be a very sexy animated prequel."

In addition, fans should listen out for some major additions to the Army of the Dead universe, with Christian Slater (Mr Robot), Joe Manganiello (True Blood), Ross Butler (13 Reasons Why) and Vanessa Hudgens (High School Musical) taking all-new roles.

We're yet to see any images or footage from the series so it's unclear exactly what the visual style will be, but Meduzarts (the studio involved) is best known for its 3D computer-generated animation.

Zack Snyder will direct two episodes of the series and Army of the Dead composer Junkie XL is also back to provide the score, so there should be a reasonable level of consistency between the two projects.

Army of Thieves (confirmed)

Release date: TBC

Army of the Dead's future does not purely reside in animation, as a live-action prequel film has already completed filming and will focus on eccentric safecracker Ludwig Dieter (played by Matthias Schweighöfer).

Plot details for Army of Thieves are being kept under wraps at the time of writing, but we do know that the film will be set at an earlier point in the zombie apocalypse and will feature another elaborate heist.

"It will be a huge heist movie with huge, huge, huge heist stuff you've never seen before," said Schweighöfer in an interview with RadioTimes.com and other press. "It's a big blockbuster and it’s a lot of fun. And it will be interesting how that connects to the zombie world of Zack's, but we are all very excited and it’s just the start of a big universe."

Schweighöfer has taken on directing duties for the prequel in addition to his leading role, with Nathalie Emmanuel (Game of Thrones), Guz Khan (Man Like Mobeen) and Stuart Martin (Jamestown) among his co-stars.

Army of the Dead 2 (possible)

Release date: TBC

There's no official word yet on whether Zack Snyder will get to return for a full sequel to Army of the Dead, but the director has certainly expressed interest in the idea.

In an interview with RadioTimes.com and other press, Snyder said that there's "always hope to return", revealing that he and co-writer Shay Hatten know where the story would go next after the first film's intriguing ending.

Ultimately, it will come down to how successful Army of the Dead proves to be on Netflix and in its limited theatrical run, which is exclusive to the United States at the time of writing.

If you've already watched the first movie, you should check out our Army of the Dead ending explainer for some detailed analysis of the final scenes.

Army of the Dead is available to stream on Netflix from Friday 21st May – for more recommendations, visit our guide to the best movies on Netflix.

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