From the news you were least expecting to read this week department, it’s being reported that two-time Academy Award nominee David Fincher is in talks to direct the zombie blockbuster sequel World War Z 2.

The original starred and was produced by Brad Pitt, who is set to return for the sequel. Pitt has worked with Fincher three times in the past (Seven, Fight Club, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), which led him to reach out to Fincher after previously attached director J.A. Bayona departed in order to direct the Jurassic World sequel. The report states that it’s Pitt, Paramount, and Skydance, who are talking to Fincher about taking the job.

Variety reports the news, saying Pitt met with Fincher a couple of weeks back to talk about directing the sequel, and that it didn’t seem likely at first but talks have progressed since then.

After a rocky production, World War Z finally came out in 2013. The movie cost $190 million to make, but surprised many by scoring $540 million worldwide. When it comes to popularity, however, things aren’t quite as sunny. The movie has a 67% on Rotten Tomatoes (average 6.2/10), and a 63% on Metacritic.

This news is surprising, there’s no doubt about that, but one can’t help but wonder how likely it really is. I for one would be truly shocked if Fincher actually directed a sequel to World War Z. It reminds me of that time The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile director Frank Darabont was randomly in talks to direct the sequel to another mediocre movie, Snow White and the Huntsman. That, of course, did not work out in the end.

But for now, it does seem like a possibility. We can only wait and see if Pitt and company can find a way to convince Fincher to actually do it. The last film Fincher made was 2014’s Gone Girl, spending time recently working on Mindhunter for Netflix, so perhaps he’s just looking for something to dive right into.

[Source: Variety]