5 Years Ago, An Epic Action Movie Finally Debuted After a Decade (But the Lost Spinoff Is What We Still Want)

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As a huge movie fan, I remember when Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead dropped on Netflix five years ago – May 14th, 2021 – and it was a total standout. What really grabbed me was how different it was from your typical zombie flick. It wasn’t about slowly building tension; instead, it was this incredibly stylish, high-stakes heist movie with zombies, set in a completely wild, neon-lit Las Vegas. And it wasn’t just mindless shuffling undead either! They actually built out a whole mythology with these smarter, ‘Alpha’ zombies, led by this seriously intimidating character named Zeus. Plus, with a $90 million budget, the movie looked amazing – I mean, a zombified tiger?! And those vault sequences were incredible. Honestly, Army of the Dead felt like a real turning point for Snyder, showing he could create something fantastic even outside of the superhero world.

Despite being a recent hit on Netflix, Army of the Dead was a long time coming – the project started at Warner Bros. back in 2007 and faced fourteen years of development challenges. For over a decade, the movie went through numerous script revisions and director changes before Netflix picked it up in 2019. This gave director Zack Snyder the chance to build on the original script and create a larger, connected universe – the “Armyverse.” While the prequel Army of Thieves, starring Ludwig Dieter (Matthias Schweighöfer), added to the story in 2021, the most interesting parts of this universe haven’t been fully explored yet.

We Still Want the Anime Spinoff of Army of the Dead

Following the release of the movie, an animated series called Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas was planned to show how Scott Ward (Dave Bautista) and his team first faced the zombie outbreak in Las Vegas. While the movie sequel dealt with the city after it was locked down, this anime series would have focused on the initial, chaotic 48 hours. The show boasted a strong voice cast, including returning actors and new faces like Joe Manganiello, Christian Slater, and Vanessa Hudgens. Because it was animated, the series could show large-scale military responses and the difficult experiences that shaped characters like Maria Cruz and Vanderohe. Fans were especially eager for this backstory because it promised to explain the strange “robot zombies” and the Area 51 secrets hinted at in the film.

Development on Lost Vegas stalled when Zack Snyder turned his attention to his large-scale Rebel Moon project. The show was then cancelled in August 2024. According to showrunner Jay Oliva, production had already begun animation when Netflix decided to cancel it, due to changes in the studio’s animation strategy. Snyder had previously told Total Film in 2023 that the show was essentially finished, explaining that all the scripts were written, storyboards were completed, and all the voice acting was recorded, meaning a rough version could already be viewed.

The cancellation of Lost Vegas wasn’t a standalone decision; Netflix also scrapped plans for a live-action sequel, Planet of the Dead, in 2024. This sequel would have followed the character Vanderohe (Omari Hardwick) as he unintentionally brought the zombie virus to Mexico City, potentially starting a worldwide pandemic. Director Zack Snyder had suggested the story would become much more intense, implying the Alphas were just the first stage of the virus’s evolution. By canceling both Planet of the Dead and the Lost Vegas anime, Netflix has effectively left several major plot points unresolved. This is especially frustrating considering the first film was a commercial hit, reaching 75 million homes in its first month.

Army of the Dead is currently available to stream on Netflix alongside the prequel Army of Thieves. 

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2026-05-14 19:13