Army of the Dead Prequel Army of Thieves Sets Fall 2021 Release Date

Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead is getting a prequel titled Army of Thieves, which will be released in Fall 2021. Snyder’s company, The Stone Quarry Productions, struck a two-year deal with Netflix, which will see his content making its way to the streaming platform. Army of the Dead performed well and his next film, Rebel Moon, that was recently announced, also falls under the terms of this deal. His zombie apocalypse film is a spiritual successor to his 2004 Dawn of the Dead and explores a group of mercenaries pursuing a heist in a dangerous quarantine zone in a Las Vegas casino. The film is directed and co-written by Snyder and co-written by Shay Hatten (John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum) and Joby Harold (King Arthur: Legend of the Sword).

The Army of Thieves plot is set before the previous film. The story follows German safecracker, Ludwig Dieter (Matthias Schweighöfer), in his early days of crime when the zombie apocalypse had only recently began. It will be directed by Schweighöfer, who will also be returning in his role. The cast is also set to include Nathalie Emmanuel, Guz Khan, Ruby O. Fee, Stuart Martin and Jonathan Cohen.

THR reported on tentative release dates for Army of the Dead  prequel Army of Thieves and the anime spin-off. While the live-action prequel is set for a Fall 2021 release date, the anime spin-off will be released in Spring 2022. See below for statements from producing partner Deborah Snyder and Netflix film head, Scott Stuber:

D. Snyder: “Netflix has given us a lot of freedom. But they’ve also embraced the idea of trying new things and not necessary waiting for a success before moving ahead. A consumer isn’t going to be waiting two years for more and that is exciting. I give them a lot of credit for developing that partnership and trust. 

Stuber: “I’ve known Zack and Deb for years and was fortunate to be part of Dawn of the Dead, his first film. I have since had the privilege of watching his career grow and see the evolving impact of his work. To see him return to his roots with Army of the Dead, which is now one of our most popular films, and build a world out of these characters with the upcoming Army of Thieves and anime series, is amazing to see. We’ve only scratched the surface of what’s still to come and create with Zack, Deb, Wes and everyone at Stone Quarry.”

In addition to the prequel and the spin-off, it was already announced that Snyder would be doing a sequel after working on Rebel Moon. Given that the first film performed so well for Netflix, it’s not entirely surprising to see them wanting to explore this universe further. Snyder has a lot of work down the pipeline that viewers will have the opportunity to experience directly on Netflix.

After Zack Snyder’s Justice League hit HBO Max to generally positive reviews, the filmmaker has been involved in a lot of conversations. His cut of the film proved to be a significant improvement over the weak theatrical cut. While there’s still more information to come on how all of these projects will connect, it’s clear that Snyder and co. have a lot invested in this universe. With Army of Thieves now having a release date of Fall 2021 and the anime spin-off coming out in Spring 2022, audiences who enjoyed Army of the Dead have some release dates to look forward to.