'I Saw That and I Was Like, 'That's Gotta Be Us' — if World War Z 2 Happens, It's Because 30 Million People Played the World War Z Video Game, Developer Insists

While Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has helped propulsion developer Saber Interactive to different level, it already had a monster deed nether its belt: World War Z.

World War Z is simply a co-op third-person shooter developed and published by Saber successful 2019 arsenic a loosely based adaptation of the 2006 caller World War Z, and acceptable successful the aforesaid beingness arsenic the 2013 Brad Pitt blockbuster.

Saber utilized its Swarm Engine to render ample hordes of zombies successful World War Z, and again but with Tyranids successful past year’s Space Marine 2. The exertion is being utilized erstwhile again for Saber’s 2026 release, John Carpenter's Toxic Commando.

In an interrogation with IGN astatine gamescom 2025, Saber improvement main Tim Willits said 30 cardinal radical had played World War Z since launch, which is simply a singular milestone for immoderate game. But, helium thinks its popularity mightiness person influenced immoderate decisions made successful Hollywood, too.

Last month, The Hollywood Reporter said Paramount had 3 franchises it planned to prioritize erstwhile it came to movies: Top Gun 3, Star Trek, and World War Z. World War Z was the biggest astonishment here, fixed it’s been implicit a decennary since the movie came out. So wherefore is Paramount funny successful making a follow-up?

Enter Saber’s World War Z. Willits said it was his feeling (he hasn’t been told this is the lawsuit successful an authoritative capacity) that the enduring occurrence of the World War Z video crippled implicit the past six years has straight contributed to Paramount’s tendency to revive the franchise successful movie terms.

“30 cardinal radical person played that game. Isn't that crazy? 30 cardinal unsocial people,” Willits began. “They person not told maine this — I'll astir apt get successful trouble! — they person not told maine this, but possibly IGN enactment this connected Instagram, that there's speech astatine Paramount astir making different World War Z. Again, they person not told maine this, but I'm beauteous definite it’s due to the fact that of that game.

“They person not told maine this. I'm guessing!” Willits continued. “30 cardinal people. That's f***ing ridiculous! I saw that [the Paramount news] and I was like, ‘Oh that’s gotta beryllium us.’”

Of course, this isn't the archetypal clip an effort to marque World War Z 2 was started. World War Z was a commercialized occurrence upon its merchandise successful 2013, grossing implicit $540 cardinal worldwide astatine the container bureau (it was Pitt's highest-grossing movie earlier the precocious released F1 movie overtook it).

Paramount confirmed its plans to marque a sequel soon after, but readying turned patchy aft Marc Foster, manager of the archetypal film, announced that helium would not beryllium returning to helm the 2nd feature.

There was a further shake-up that resulted successful David Fincher signing connected arsenic J.A. Bayona's replacement successful the director's chair. However, the sequel ne'er pulled unneurotic arsenic Paramount decided to halt pre-production successful 2019, reportedly owed to fund issues and a deficiency of momentum, adjacent though accumulation was expected to statesman that year.

In 2023, Fincher likened his scrapped World War Z sequel to HBO's The Last of Us TV adaptation, saying helium was gladsome his movie didn't marque it beyond pre-production. Fincher told GQ that determination were immoderate notable similarities betwixt his Brad Pitt-fronted follow-up movie to World War Z and the HBO adaptation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us, truthful overmuch truthful that helium was near feeling blessed his task ne'er came unneurotic due to the fact that helium felt the different had "more existent estate" to tackle the aforesaid topics.

"It was a small similar The Last of Us," Fincher said, teasing what helium had planned for the World War Z sequel. "I'm gladsome that we didn't bash what we were doing due to the fact that The Last of Us has a batch much existent property to research the aforesaid stuff. In our rubric sequence, we were going to usage the small parasite... they utilized it successful their rubric series and successful that fantastic opening with the Dick Cavett, David Frost-style speech show."

Will Brad Pitt instrumentality for World War Z 2? Photo by Lars Niki/Corbis via Getty Images.

The question for fans of World War Z the movie is of people whether Pitt would instrumentality for a imaginable sequel, oregon if Paramount would spell for a marque caller cast. Meanwhile, immoderate caller World War Z movie would intelligibly payment Saber’s game, and possibly spark a speech astir a video crippled sequel.

“I'm not expected to accidental anything, but we person chill worldly to speech astir successful that crippled successful the future,” is each Willits would tease astir World War Z.

We’ve got plentifulness much from our interrogation with Willits, including his comments connected however a ample chunk of fans person “assumptions” astir the Warhammer 40,000 beingness that are incorrect arsenic a effect of the immense occurrence of the game, wherefore delaying Space Marine 2 was the champion happening Saber ever did, and vague excitement astir Space Marine 3.

Photo by Lars Niki/Corbis via Getty Images.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].