Matthias Schweighöfer teases the "crazy" backstory of his Army of the Dead character Dieter, which will be revealed in the prequel movie zombie movie Army of the Dead will combine a heist adventure with the undead in violent, colorful fashion. The film sees a group of mercenaries venture into the zombie hot spot of Las Vegas with the goal of grabbing a multimillion dollar prize from beneath a casino. Led by Dave Bautista's Scott Ward, Army of the Dead is made up for a large, compelling ensemble.
Army of the Dead was created with an eye on developing its own universe ripe with franchise possibilities. In fact, two prequels are already in the works: An anime-style series and Army of Thieves. Schweighöfer directed and stars in Army of Thieves, which focuses specifically on Ludwig Dieter, his safecracker from Snyder's film. The prequel has already started and ended production, though it has yet to receive an official release date on Netflix.
Screen Rant received the opportunity to speak to Schweighöfer about Army of the Dead, though we couldn't resist looking for some teases about Thieves. Schweighöfer gave a little update about where he's at with the project and also hyped up Dieter's backstory. He said:
Matthias Schweighöfer: Oh, yeah. I just finished a prequel for my character, so everything is in that film. But the biography was that Dieter was - I can't say that, because it's a spoiler alert. You will love the prequel. His way to America is awesome. It's crazy.
In addition to Schweighöfer, Army of Thieves stars Nathalie Emmanuel, Stuart Martin, Guz Khan, and Ruby O. Fee, among others. Aside from the promise of Dieter's backstory, and that it will take place before Army of the Dead, closer to the start of the zombie outbreak, little is known about the project's plot. However, Schweighöfer did reveal something: It will show how Dieter came to America. This could mean Army of Thieves is less of a heist and more of a road trip adventure, though Dieter's safecracking abilities still promise to have a hand in whatever is in store.
With Schweighöfer wrapping up work on Army of Thieves soon, Netflix could perhaps set a release date for later this year. The early reactions to Army of the Dead singled out Schweighöfer as an MVP, and the release of that film could increase excitement for the prequel. Plus, Dead could provide some clues about what to expect from Army of Thieves. Regardless of when it happens, there will be more ahead for Dieter, and it sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun.
