It's been seventeen years since Zack Snyder made his directorial debut with the James Gunn-penned remake of George A. Romero's iconic zombie flick, Dawn of the Dead. His forthcoming project, Army of the Dead, sees him return to the action-horror genre, bringing to life an idea that he'd been contemplating for over a decade.
In the latest issue of Empire Magazine, the star of the film, Dave Bautista, not only shared that he is a "zombie fan," but that he tried for years - albeit unsuccessfully - to get on The Walking Dead. Here is what he said:
“I’m a zombie fan. I tried to get on Walking Dead for years. I said I would come and play a zombie for free, but they said, ‘You’re too big!’”
The WWE Legend then revealed what he found special about Army of the Dead and why he ultimately took the job:
“For me, there had to be something special about a zombie film for me to sign up. What sets us apart is the heist. But there’s a whole bunch of different layers to this film.”
Snyder describes his Dirty Dozen meets Ocean's Eleven genre mashup as "unapologetic, unabashed madness." The story is set in Las Vegas, walled off from the rest of the world, six years after a zombie outbreak. Dave Bautista plays Scott, a mercenary tasked with leading a team to steal millions of dollars from a casino vault before the area is levelled by a nuclear blast.
Scheduled to release on Netflix this summer, Army of the Dead also stars Ella Purnell, Ana de la Reguera, Garret Dillahunt, Omari Hardwick, and Tig Notaro.