While Zack Snyder typically gets lumped into one of two boxes—superheroes or zombies—the truth is that maybe one of his most beloved, well-known hit films is actually the highly stylized war feature, “300.” Based on a Frank Miller comic book series, “300,” in retrospect, speaks to Snyder’s particular filmmaking style more than even “Dawn of the Dead” (which is often viewed as his “best” work). So, it would make sense that Warner Bros. would be interested in bringing the filmmaker back for another “300” tale. And that’s, apparently, what the studio was hoping to do, though it didn’t necessarily work out.
In a recent discussion with The Playlist’s own The Fourth Wall podcast (the full interview is coming later this week), Zack Snyder talked about his recent flirtation with returning to the world of “300” for a sequel film that was ultimately passed on by Warner Bros. The film, which would be the third in the franchise, after the less-than-successful “300: Rise of an Empire,” was assigned to Zack Snyder to pen over the pandemic. But what he came up with isn’t something the studio was hoping for.
“I just couldn’t really get my teeth into it. Over the pandemic, I had a deal with Warner Brothers and I wrote what was essentially going to be the final chapter in ‘300,’” said Snyder. “But when I sat down to write it I actually wrote a different movie. I was writing this thing about Alexander the Great, and it just turned into a movie about the relationship between Hephaestion and Alexander. It turned out to be a love story. So it really didn’t fit in as the third movie.”
He added, “But there was that concept, and it came out really great. It’s called ‘Blood and Ashes,’ and it’s a beautiful love story, really, with warfare. I would love to do it, [WB] said no… you know, they’re not huge fans of mine. It is what it is.”
It’s refreshing to hear Snyder speak so frankly about his relationship status with Warner Bros. He’s not wrong to think that the studio likely isn’t going to be in the Zack Snyder moviemaking business anytime soon. And since the “300” sequel he penned doesn’t really fit with the studio’s idea for the franchise, it looks like movement has sputtered to a stop. But considering WB is always looking for more franchise film opportunities, it wouldn’t be shocking to see another iteration of “300” show up at some point in the future.
With his “300” sequel not moving forward, Snyder does have a recently-written project that he’d like to see get made, however. Back in February, Snyder discussed the idea that he was interested in doing a retelling of the Arthurian legend in a film. Not much was known at the time about what that might look like. However, speaking with The Fourth Wall, he does say that, while it’s a retelling, it’s “kinda weird.”
READ MORE: Zack Snyder Is Developing A “Faithful Retelling” Of The King Arthur Legend
“I’m writing a kind of retelling of the Arthurian legend, that’s sort of set in a different place,” explained Snyder, about the recently-discussed project. “It’s like in the Gold Rush era of America. Kinda weird, but it’s cool and I’m really into it.”
You can hear more of the interview with Zack Snyder in the upcoming episode of The Fourth Wall, coming later this week. If you want to watch a Snyder film that was actually written, filmed, and now in theaters, you can do so with “Army of the Dead,” which is in select cinemas now and will be on Netflix on May 21.
