The Maze Runner movie series is about to usher in its fourth installment. The confirmation of "Maze Runner 4" has sparked heated discussions about the progress of the film's production.
Summary
Disney has confirmed that Maze Runner 4 is in development, expanding the successful YA franchise with a potential new storyline. Possible storylines for Maze Runner 4 include a prequel or sequel, providing different directions and connections to the original trilogy. There is uncertainty over the return of the original cast of Maze Runner 4 due to time constraints and aging characters.
20th Century Pictures participated in the wave of young adult book adaptations in the 2010s, adapting James Dashner's Maze Runner series of novels into a major action film series. The original trilogy starred Dylan O'Brien as Thomas and Kaya Scodelario as Teresa as they battled WCKD and provided a cure for the Flare virus.
"Maze Runner: The Death Cure" concludes the trilogy, but it has not been made clear whether the series will continue.
For a long time, people had a glimmer of hope for the possibility of Maze Runner 4. The original three Maze Runner movies performed well at the box office, grossing nearly $1 billion worldwide. Additionally, Dashner wrote additional novels, providing 20th Century Pictures and Disney with the opportunity to expand the series.
With the final installment launching in 2018, the fate of the series and the possibility of Maze Runner 4 has been in the spotlight. While the film's exact production status is known, there's no clear official word yet on which characters the film will focus on next, or specific details about the story.
The sequel was confirmed in 2019
Disney has taken over the "Maze Runner" series since acquiring 20th Century Pictures in 2019. The acquisition came a year after Maze Runner: The Death Cure was released, and the film received the worst reviews of the series and ended with its lowest box office.
Despite the poor performance of the last movie, Disney saw the value of the IP and subsequently confirmed that "Maze Runner 4" was in production.
In April 2019, at the cinemacon film conference, Disney executives revealed that a new "Maze Runner" movie was in production.
Meanwhile, 20th Century Pictures executives also hinted at the series' continuation in their speeches, while announcing sequels to other previously Fox-helmed series such as Kingsman, Avatar, War for the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes. Alien".
So far, Disney has fulfilled its sequel promises for these series, such as "Kingsman 3", multiple "Avatar" sequels, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes: Kingdom" and "Alien: Romulus". In front of you.
However, Maze Runner 4 is the only movie from that original announcement that has yet to be produced. There have been no updates on the film's production status since it was initially confirmed. There is also no news of a director or screenwriter officially joining the project. There has been no sign of activity at
html for over 0 years, leading to speculation as to whether the film is still in active development, but there has been no announcement of Maze Runner 4's cancellation. Which book will thestory be adapted from?
Regarding the story of "Maze Runner 4", there are two main possibilities. James Dashner wrote a prequel and sequel to the original novel, and Disney could choose one direction for the adaptation.
currently has two prequels and two sequels/spin-off books for Disney to choose from to determine the story direction of "Maze Runner 4". One possibility is to adapt "Kill Order," which tells the story of the 13 years before the outbreak of the Flare virus.
Another possibility is to adapt "The Maze Cutter", which tells the story 73 years after the outbreak of the Flare virus. The story of "Maze Runner 4" will revolve around the origin or subsequent development of the Flare virus, depending on the direction chosen, and have important connections with characters from the original trilogy.
Possible Returning Cast
Adaptations of "Kill Order" or "The Maze Cutter" both reduce the possibility of original "Maze Runner" cast members returning.Kill Order does include the characters of Thomas and Teresa in the books, but bringing back Dylan O'Brien or Kaia Scodelario will be challenging.
Their roles are limited to events that occurred when they were both five years old, before the outbreak of the Flare virus. The timeline of "The Maze Cutter" prevents the return of almost all of the original cast members. Since the story takes place after 1973, the young characters must have been in their eighties or nineties at that time, so the story cannot unfold.
Disney may change the books by adding characters familiar to audiences, such as wckd's Ava Page, and bring back some characters through flashbacks and other means.
Possible release date
As for the release date of "Maze Runner 4", it is still unclear. Although they have planned a release deadline of 2027, there is no confirmed date for the movie in their schedule.
The most likely scenario is that "Maze Runner 4" will not be released as early as 2028.
Only during this period of time will Disney have enough time to form a creative team and produce it. The timing of the release is also relatively perfect, as it will be 10 years since Maze Runner: The Death Cure concluded the original trilogy.
In short, the release date of "Maze Runner 4" is difficult to predict. If development proceeds quickly, Disney could move the film to production and release in as little as two years.
But if the studio continues to let the IP go unnoticed, it may take longer to get a movie out again. For now, we can only hope that Disney will quickly announce the release date of "Maze Runner 4".
