Maze Runner: The Death Cure has been delayed until 2018 to accommodate the recovery of franchise star Dylan O’Brien.
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O’Brien, who also appeared in Teen Wolf, was injured during an on-set car accident in March. Variety reports that the film, originally schedule for release in February, has now been pushed back to January 12, 2018.
The first Maze Runner film earned over $100 million at the domestic box office, while Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials clocked in at around $85 million. Despite some fan concern, though, the films are relatively inexpensive to make and do well on home video and in the international market — so the third film was on track until O’Brien’s accident.
Wes Ball is directing the film, which sees O’Brien’s character is on a mission to find a cure to a disease known as The Flare. The Death Cure will adapt the third installment of the Maze Runner trilogy of novels and will, barring spinoff or prequel potential, likely be the last film in the franchise. Despite the popularity of the practice in franchises like Harry Potter and The Avengers, Ball has been quoted as promising fans that The Death Cure will not be split up across two movies.
The novels, written by JamesDashner, centers on
sixteen-year-old Thomas, portrayed by O’Brien, who awakens in a rusty elevator with no memory of who he is, only to learn he’s been delivered to the middle of an intricate maze, along with a large number of other boys, who have been trying to find their way out of the ever-changing labyrinth — all while establishing a functioning society in what they call the Glade.
This is the second time the film has been delayed. The accident, which took place on March 17, saw O’Brien suffer multiple broken bones.
