It appears that there are two ways to kill a zombie movie, an over inflated budget and production delays. I’m sure there are more ways to do it, but it looks like those two things were the bullet to the head for World War Z 2.

The sequel, which was supposed to bring back Brad Pitt and be directed by David Fincher, has been cancelled by Paramount Pictures. More on the report below.

In an exclusive report from The Playlist, World War Z 2 was cancelled for a variety of reasons. One reason being the budget. But interestingly enough the report says Fincher’s sequel would have had a lower budget than the original, which cost a little under $200 million and made over $540 million worldwide.

They suspect that a majority of the sequel’s budget is now being funneled into the Mission: Impossible sequels.

However, never let it be said that Paramount did not try to get things off the ground. They just “dragged their heels.” The studio was eyeing a 2018 or 2019 summer release, but simply could not commit to it. And while Pitt and Fincher were recruiting Dennis Kelly, the creator and writer of the original U.K. Utopia series, to pen the script, the studio had been staffing up for a lengthy shoot this year, across five different countries and with a six-month stint in Atlanta. The only problem is, the sequel never got the green light and none of the hires were officially made. The site adds that Pitt isn’t happy with the situation.

What this does is it slims Paramount’s slate down one film. The studio, who has been struggling to stay afloat with lackluster franchises like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Transformers, only has the Mission: Impossible films to rely on. At least for now. There are other projects to consider.

But another World War Z film could have been just the thing to bolster that slate. However, it has been one very bumpy road to this very unfortunate finale. Before Fincher was brought in, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom director J.A. Bayona was tapped to helm the sequel. However, he left due to creative differences. That’s when Pitt suggested Paramount bring in his long time directing collaborator David Fincher. The two worked together on films like Fight Club and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. While a big budget blockbuster film is certainly outside of Fincher’s wheelhouse, it wouldn’t be the first time he has attempted to direct one. He had a new vision for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea set up at Disney a few years back. But, once again, budgetary problems prevented the film from surfacing.

Had everything worked out, World War Z 2 would have started production this summer. But maybe the writing was on the wall this whole time. In 2017, Paramount had pulled the sequel off its release schedule. Additionally, Fincher has been busy working on season 2 of Netflix’s Mindhuner.

Of course, there is some hope that World War Z 2 could come back, maybe in a different shape and form. But with all of the recent layoffs that the studio had to make, I wouldn’t hold your breath on any sequel happening.

[Source: The Playlist]