Paramount is moving closer to bringing World War Z back to the big screen, with Brad Pitt set to return for a sequel more than a decade after the 2013 zombie thriller became a major global performer for the studio.
Edward Berger, the German filmmaker behind All Quiet on the Western Front and Conclave, is on board to direct the new feature. The move marks the latest and most concrete step yet for a follow-up that has spent years moving through different versions without getting made.
Pitt will produce the sequel with Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner through Plan B Entertainment. Berger will executive produce. The script was written by Dennis Kelly, who won a Tony for writing the book for Matilda: The Musical and has also created several British thriller series.
A sequel years in the making
The original World War Z was based on Max Brooks’ bestselling 2006 novel World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. Paramount’s film version reworked the material into a large-scale disaster movie, centering on a former United Nations worker racing across the globe in search of a cure for a zombie outbreak.
Directed by Marc Forster, the 2013 film became notable during production for its rewritten and reshot third act, as well as concerns over a budget that expanded during the process. Despite that turbulent path, the movie ultimately became both a critical and box office success, grossing more than $540 million worldwide.
A sequel has been in development on and off since the first film’s release. Previous versions included filmmakers J.A. Bayona, of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, and David Fincher, a frequent Pitt collaborator, as potential directors. According to the source material, when Skydance took over Paramount in 2025, the World War Z sequel became one of the company’s top priorities.
Pitt and Berger’s existing connection
The sequel would also extend Pitt’s working relationship with Berger. The two collaborated on The Riders, a psychological thriller from A24 that is currently in post-production.
Pitt’s next screen appearance for Paramount is in the survival drama Heart of the Beast, directed by David Ayer, which opens Sept. 25.
Representation details are also in place: Pitt is repped by CAA and Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Berger is repped by CAA, Range, Casarotto Ramsay & Associates, and Hanson Jacobson. Kelly is repped by UTA.
For now, the key development is that Paramount is once again closing in on a World War Z sequel, this time with Pitt returning, Berger directing and a script by Kelly anchoring the latest version of the long-gestating follow-up.