Dave Bautista Shares What Makes Zack Snyder Such A Unique Director
Dave Bautista has opened up about his experience working with Zack Snyder on Army of the Dead. The Netflix blockbuster puts a unique twist on the zombie genre with a group of mercenaries conducting a heist set in an outbreak-destroyed Las Vegas. Bautista leads an ensemble cast that includes Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera, Theo Rossi, Tig Notaro, Matthias Schweighöfer, and Nora Arnezeder.
Snyder has kept Army of the Dead in his back pocket for the better part of the past decade, first announcing it back in 2007 with Dawn of the Dead studio Universal Pictures and future Snyder home Warner Bros. co-producing and Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. set to direct. After languishing in development hell for years, Netflix acquired the rights to the project with Snyder moving to co-write, produce and direct the film. Shortly after the conclusion of filming, Netflix showed their confidence in the project by ordering a prequel anime series and a live-action prequel film centered on Schweighöfer's character and directed by the star.
While chatting with Screen Rant for the zombie heist thriller, Bautista described his experience working with Snyder on the film as "different than anything else" he or the director has ever done. Noting he's wanted to work with Snyder since the filmmaker's first stab at the zombie genre with the James Gunn-penned Dawn of the Dead remake, Bautista expresses that Snyder has "a special way of capturing things visually in all his films." The 52-year-old actor also expressed how much he enjoyed working with a director also acting as the cinematographer, believing it to be a more collaborative effort. Read the rest of what Bautista had to say below:
"That's something different, because I've never had that in the past. And what's really cool about that is I'm not communicating with a guy who's sitting in a tent behind a monitor somewhere, I'm actually talking to the guy who's right here holding the camera. I'm being directed by him while he's right here, but I also get to watch his process and see how he works; see what he's looking at visually, or see the moments that he's capturing. He feels like he needs to capture those moments on film, to make his film better. So, it's a really interesting process to actually see a painter paint his picture. It's different than watching the finished product and seeing what it is; seeing it on a big screen or seeing it hanging on the wall. It's different when you're watching them actually make it, to see it; to process it and watch his process. So, it was very educational, and that was the experience that I was hoping for. And I actually got more than I was hoping for, because when I signed up, I didn't really realize that he was going to be so in it with us. Because he was just always right there. It was always like he was one of the cast members, just always in the mix with us. He was always dirty and sweaty and out there baking in the sun, just grimey and grungy. We were all carrying weapons, and he had his he had his camera. The camaraderie was special."
Though critical reception to Snyder's works has been decidedly mixed, to say the least, one of the more consistent areas of praise for his films is his visual flair. That being said, the positivity coming from Bautista is comforting for both longtime fans and those curious about Snyder. Particularly, given the film marks his first outing as the official cinematographer on a project he's directing, not hearing stories of a stressed-out Snyder or tense shoot atmosphere is certainly a good sign.
Early reviews have begun rolling out for Snyder's Army of the Dead and though still not a critical darling, it does appear he's starting to get into a groove of better-reviewed outings. Bautista has worked with a number of celebrated filmmakers across his career, including Guardians of the Galaxy's James Gunn, but to hear his continued praise of Snyder certainly points to a rich future for the duo. Perhaps they could even come together to explore a new superhero when Bautista's time as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Drax comes to an end.