'World War Z' Being Eyed As A Potential Trilogy; Movie Described As Mix Between Jason Bourne & 'The Walking Dead'

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by Kevin Jagernauth
January 3, 2012 6:56 PM
6 Comments

In case you didn't get the memo, for the most part, the major studios no longer sweat the small stuff. It's all about the tentpole these days, and the bigger the better with more and more movies going all in on their budgets, and then crossing their fingers that the all important first weekend is a big one. Franchises are either made or broken on those numbers between Friday and Sunday night, but between all the studios throwing elbows for dominance, in 2011 it was Paramount who won the battle taking home the biggest market share. And heading into 2012, they are hoping to keep that streak alive and have one of the biggest stars in the world in their arsenal to help them do it.

Brad Pitt will topline the highly anticiapted "World War Z" that arrives at the end of the year, and already, Paramount is hoping for big things. The story is set in the aftermath of an undead apocalypse which has wiped out much of the world’s population, and sees Pitt playing a U.N. researcher investigating the outbreak. A ridiculously strong supporting cast has been rounded up for the Marc Forster directed film including Bryan Cranston, Matthew Fox, James Badge Dale and Mirielle Eno and if all goes well, it won't be the last we see of everyone (at least those that survive).

In the midst of a Pitt profile with the LA Times, a little nugget of info was dropped revealing, "Forster and Paramount Pictures each view 'World War Z' as a trilogy that would have the grounded, gun-metal realism of, say, Damon's Jason Bourne series tethered to the unsettling end-times vibe of AMC's 'The Walking Dead.' " Those are some pretty high benchmarks they're aiming for, but like we said, these days it's go big or go home. But that said, it's an enticing mix of ingredients there.

The movie is still about a year away, with much more to come. We're guessing Paramount will go very, very hard at Comic-Con with 'Z' and we figure that's when we'll start seeing the first substantial footage from the movie. But until then, the stakes are getting raised, so let's see if Forster and Pitt can meet them.

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6 Comments

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Rhyan W | March 4, 2012 2:23 AMReply

Brad Pitt has already screwed this project up. Everything that The Walking Dead is on AMC is what WWZ should have been on HBO or Showtime. The concept will not work as a feature film, much less three films. From what I've read, it's already deviating majorly from the book upon which it's based. *sighs, walks away*
jimmiescoffee | January 3, 2012 8:21 PMReply

pg 13.
KitCon | January 3, 2012 8:19 PMReply

This is Pitt's first blockbuste- type movie in a while. TOL and Moneyball won plaudits but not much money and Cogan's Trade may be in the same boat. He has certainly made some excellent choices even if they were more critical than commercial successes. It may have reached the point where he needs a WWZ to bring in some cash that will allow him to pursue more indie material. Especially since Jolie hasn't starred in a film in a while and her Blood & Honey may end up being a generous donation to Bosnia. But it's all very admirable and other big stars who've been churning out purely tentpole fare could learn from him / them.
Ty | January 4, 2012 2:13 PM

Really? Is "Tree of Life" too long to type?
PapushiSun | January 3, 2012 9:44 PM

Like Johnny Depp and Robert Downey Jr.?
marcus | January 3, 2012 7:33 PMReply

it's Mireille Enos !