Maze Runner: The Death Cure

Maze Runner: The Death Cure (also known simply as The Death Cure) is a 2018 American dystopian science fiction film directed by Wes Ball and with a screenplay by T.S. Nowlin, based on the 2011 novel The Death Cure written by James Dashner. It is the sequel to the 2015 film Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials and the third and final installment in the Maze Runner film series. The film stars Dylan O'Brien, Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Dexter Darden, Nathalie Emmanuel, Giancarlo Esposito, Aidan Gillen, Walton Goggins, Ki Hong Lee, Jacob Lofland, Katherine McNamara, Barry Pepper, Will Poulter, Rosa Salazar, and Patricia Clarkson.

For the book the film is based on, see The Death Cure.

Maze Runner: The Death Cure
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWes Ball
Screenplay byT.S. Nowlin
Based onThe Death Cure
by James Dashner
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyGyula Pados
Edited by
Music byJohn Paesano
Production
companies
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release dates
  • January 11, 2018 (2018-01-11) (Seoul)
  • January 26, 2018 (2018-01-26) (United States)
Running time
143 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
Budget$62 million[2]
Box office$288.2 million[2]

Maze Runner: The Death Cure was originally set to be released on February 17, 2017, in the United States by 20th Century Fox, but the studio rescheduled the film's release for January 26, 2018, allowing time for O'Brien to recover from injuries he sustained during filming. The film received mixed reviews from critics with praise for the cast performances, action sequences and visual effects but criticism for the storyline and character development. The film grossed over $288 million worldwide.

Plot

Thomas, Newt, and Frypan, the last of the free "Gladers", join with the Right Arm resistance to retrieve other Immunes from a carriage of a train operated by WCKD, the organization responsible for capturing and experimenting on immune children. They discover that Minho, their Glader friend whom WCKD had captured,[lower-alpha 1] was on a different carriage and is headed to the "Last City", WCKD's base of operations. Against the orders of Vince, the leader of the Right Arm, the three head to the Last City to rescue Minho, who is being tortured by WCKD along with several other children in the hope of developing a cure for the virus. The group is attacked by Cranks, humans infected with the Flare. However, they are saved by Jorge and Brenda, who join them.

The group makes it to the wall of the Last City, which is heavily fortified. Outside the wall, people are rallying in protest to be let into the city. When WCKD opens fire at the protesters, the group is captured and taken to a hideout by a crew wearing gas masks. One of the members is revealed to be Gally, who survived being impaled with a spear by Minho.[lower-alpha 2] Gally takes them to meet Lawrence, a rebellion leader, who helps Thomas, Newt, and Gally enter the Last City. Gally takes Thomas and Newt on a tour of the city and, after spotting Teresa, tells Thomas that he can get them into WCKD headquarters. Newt then reveals to Thomas that he is infected. Promising to cure him, Thomas and Gally capture Teresa.

Disguised as WCKD soldiers, Thomas, Newt, and Gally escort Teresa inside WCKD headquarters and toward the location of the Immunes. Gally looks after the Immune children and stays to find a serum that slows the Flare. Thomas, Teresa, and Newt go to find Minho, but are discovered and chased by Janson. Teresa lets them escape to find Minho before going to do a blood test on Thomas' blood, obtained when she was removing trackers from the Gladers. After delivering the Immune children and the serum to Brenda, Gally returns to WCKD headquarters to find Thomas. Brenda is forced to flee with the Immune children to avoid capture. Thomas and Newt reunite with Minho and escape from the WCKD building. Teresa discovers that Thomas' blood can cure the Flare. She shares her discovery with WCKD's leader, Ava Paige, both of whom agree that they must find Thomas. Brenda and the Immune children escape WCKD with Frypan's help.

Meanwhile, Lawrence rallies his rebels outside the city before blowing a hole in the city wall and sacrificing himself to allow his allies and the infected people to storm the city. Gally saves Thomas, Newt, and Minho from WCKD soldiers. While Minho and Gally go to get the serum from Brenda, Thomas gets a pendant from Newt before Newt passes out. Teresa transmits her voice throughout the city and tells Thomas that his blood can save Newt if he will return to WCKD. Newt, nearly consumed by the Flare, regains consciousness and attacks and begs Thomas to kill him. When Thomas refuses, Newt stabs himself with his own knife. Thomas returns to the WCKD facility and confronts Paige. While she talks with him, Janson, having caught the Flare, kills her and uses a sedative on Thomas. Thomas wakes up inside the facility. Teresa successfully removes some of his blood. She hears that Janson is interested only in curing himself and others whom he deems worthy. Teresa attacks Janson and frees Thomas, who fights with Janson. The fight ends when Thomas releases two Cranks on Janson. With the building on fire, Thomas and Teresa escape to the roof. The rest of the team arrives on a Berg. Teresa helps Thomas on board, but the building caves in, causing Teresa to fall to her death.

The group escapes with the rest of the Immunes to a safe haven, where the remaining population can live in safety and rebuild civilization. Thomas discovers that the pendant that Newt gave him had a note in it. He reads the note in which Newt tells him to look after everyone before he thanks Thomas for being his friend.

Cast

Production

In March 2015, it was confirmed that T.S. Nowlin, who co-wrote the first and wrote the second film, would adapt Maze Runner: The Death Cure.[3] On September 16, 2015, it was confirmed that Ball would return to direct the final film.

Filming

Principal photography began on March 14, 2016, in Vancouver, British Columbia.[4][5] Previously it was revealed at San Diego Comic-Con International that filming would begin in February 2016.[6]

On March 18, 2016, it was reported that actor Dylan O'Brien had been hospitalized for injuries sustained on set during filming. James Dashner announced via Twitter that the production had been postponed after the accident.[7] Producers were reported to be "looking to" resume filming around mid-May.[8] According to the Directors Guild of Canada's production list, the film was scheduled to resume filming on May 9, and complete principal photography on July 26. However, on April 29, 2016, production was shut down indefinitely as O'Brien's injuries were revealed to be more serious than previously thought.[9]

Filming resumed on March 6, 2017, in Cape Town, South Africa.[10][11][12] In May 2017, it was announced that Walton Goggins would play the part of Lawrence, described as "an unusual and dangerous character who is part-revolutionary, part-anarchist, and a voice for the voiceless people."[13] Principal photography wrapped on June 3, 2017.[14]

Visual effects

The visual effects were provided by Weta Digital and supervised by Chris White.[15]

Release

The Death Cure was originally scheduled to be released in the United States on February 17, 2017.[16] However, due to O'Brien's injuries, the studio said that it was unlikely that this date was going to be met.[9] On May 27, 2016, 20th Century Fox rescheduled the film for January 12, 2018.[17]

On April 22, 2017, the studio delayed the release date once again, to February 9, 2018, in order to allow more time for post-production; months later, on August 25, the studio moved the release forward two weeks.[18][19] The film premiered on January 26, 2018.[20][21]

Home media

Maze Runner: The Death Cure was released on Blu-Ray and DVD on April 24, 2018.[22]

Reception

Box office

Maze Runner: The Death Cure grossed $58 million in the United States and Canada, and $230.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $288.2 million, against a production budget of $62 million.[2]

In the United States and Canada, The Death Cure was released alongside the wide expansion of Hostiles, and was expected to gross around $20 million from 3,786 theaters in its opening weekend.[23] The film made $1.5 million from Thursday night previews, in between the $1.1 million made by the first film and $1.7 million by the second, and $8.4 million on its first day. It ended up opening to $24.2 million, down from the previous film but still finishing atop the box office.[24] In its second weekend the film dropped 57% to $10.5 million, finishing second behind Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.[25]

A week prior to its North American release, the film debuted in South Korea, Australia and Taiwan, grossing $15.1 million over its opening weekend.[23] During the first two weeks of international release, the film dominated the international box office taking $62.6 and $35.2 million respectively, and outpacing the two previous films.[26][27]

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 43% based on 171 reviews, and an average rating of 5.1/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Maze Runner: The Death Cure may offer closure to fans of the franchise, but for anyone who hasn't already been hooked, this bloated final installment is best left unseen."[28] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[29] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.[24]

Accolades
List of awards and nominations
Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result
2018 Teen Choice Awards[30] Choice Action Movie Maze Runner: The Death Cure Nominated
Choice Action Movie Actor Dylan O'Brien Nominated
Choice Movie Ship Dylan O'Brien & Kaya Scodelario Nominated
Choice Movie Villain Aidan Gillen Nominated

Future

Following the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney in March 2019, Disney confirmed in April 2019 at their CinemaCon presentation that new Maze Runner films were in development.[31]

Notes
  1. As depicted in Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials
  2. As depicted in The Maze Runner

References
  1. "MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE (2018) (12A)". British Board of Film Classification. January 17, 2018. Archived from the original on January 19, 2018. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  2. "Maze Runner: The Death Cure". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on July 21, 2018. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  3. Busch, Anita (March 4, 2015). "'Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Sets T.S. Nowlin To Pen". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on March 5, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  4. "The Maze Runner 3 to begin filming in Vancouver in March". Vancity Buzz. January 18, 2016. Archived from the original on January 20, 2016. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
  5. A., Aliza (March 9, 2016). "'The Maze Runner: Death Cure' News And Updates: Filming Confirmed; Release Date Set On February". Jobs & Hire. Archived from the original on June 5, 2016. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  6. @ClevverTV (July 9, 2015). "The script for Death Cure is currently being worked on & will begin filming in February #ScorchTrials #ScorchSneakPeek" (Tweet). Retrieved July 10, 2015 – via Twitter.
  7. Zumberge, Marianne (March 18, 2016). "'Maze Runner' Star Dylan O'Brien Injured on Set". Variety. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on March 18, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
  8. Malkin, Mark (April 5, 2016). "Maze Runner Star Dylan O'Brien Healing Very Well After On-Set Accident, Will Return to Work in About Six Weeks". E!. Archived from the original on April 20, 2016. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  9. Ford, Rebecca; Kit, Borys (April 29, 2016). "Dylan O'Brien's Injuries Force 'Maze Runner' Sequel to Extend Production Shut Down". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  10. Wilson, Lena (August 29, 2016). "Maze Runner: The Death Cure Resumes Filming In February". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on August 31, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  11. Bailey, Ian (September 4, 2016). "Maze Runner film production leaving B.C. for South Africa". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on September 4, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  12. Ball, Wes [@wesball] (March 2, 2017). "Big day today. Shot two scenes in 7 hours (that's a short day for me). Also prelit a set for tomorrow. Then watched dailies... Pretty stuff" (Tweet). Retrieved April 23, 2018 – via Twitter.
  13. Hipes, Patrick (May 10, 2017). "Walton Goggins Set For 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure'". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on January 26, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  14. Ball, Wes [@wesball] (June 4, 2017). "That's a wrap! Thanks to a great cast and crew for a hell of an experience" (Tweet). Retrieved April 23, 2018 – via Twitter.
  15. "MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE - The Art of VFXThe Art of VFX". www.artofvfx.com. April 17, 2018. Archived from the original on December 17, 2018. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  16. Chitwood, Adam (April 18, 2015). "MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE Set for 2017 Release; Miraculously Not Being Split into Two Movies". Collider. Complex Media. Archived from the original on June 22, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  17. "Maze Runner: The Death Cure". Launching Films. Film Distributors' Association. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2017.
  18. Ball, Wes [@wesball] (April 22, 2017). "Hey maze fans. Don't worry. Release date shifted 4 weeks. It's a good thing. I get four more weeks of vfx finals, sound mixing, editing" (Tweet). Retrieved April 23, 2018 – via Twitter.
  19. Gallagher, Brian (April 24, 2017). "Maze Runner 3: Death Cure Gets Delayed Yet Again". MovieWeb. Watchr Media. Archived from the original on October 31, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  20. Anthony, D'Allessandro (April 22, 2017). "'Deadpool 2', 'New Mutants' & 'Dark Phoenix' Find 2018 Dates Among Fox's Slew of Release Changes & Additions". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on October 30, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  21. Dave, McNary (August 25, 2017). "Steven Spielberg's Pentagon Papers Movie Re-Titled 'The Post'". Variety. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved August 26, 2017.
  22. "Maze Runner: The Death Cure (DVD)". Amazon. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
  23. McNary, Dave (January 23, 2018). "Box Office: 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Races Toward $20 Million Opening". Variety. Archived from the original on January 24, 2018. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
  24. D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 28, 2018). "Fox Controls Close To 40% Of Weekend B.O. Led By 'Maze Runner' & Oscar Holdovers; 'Hostiles' Gallops Past $10M". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on January 27, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  25. D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 4, 2018). "'Jumanji' Poised To Be Dwayne Johnson's Highest Grossing Pic of All-Time Stateside After Super Bowl Weekend Rebound". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on February 3, 2018. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
  26. McNary, Dave (January 28, 2018). "Box Office: 'Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Dominates With $62.6 Million Internationally". Variety. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  27. McNary, Dave (February 4, 2018). "'Maze Runner: The Death Cure' Sprints to $35 Million at International Box Office". Variety. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on February 5, 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  28. "Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on January 16, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  29. "Maze Runner: The Death Cure Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 25, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  30. "Teen Choice Awards 2018: See the full list of winners". EW.com. Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 13, 2018. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
  31. "Fox Plans More Sequels to Popular Movie Franchises Post-Disney Merger". CBR. April 3, 2019. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
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