Army of the Dead prequel to unlock Ludwig Dieter’s past

Army of Thieves, the upcoming prequel to Zack Synder’s Army of the Dead, will see at least one of the characters from the original returning. Ludwig Dieter, portrayed by German actor Matthias Schweighöfer, has been confirmed to be part of the cast of the Netflix film.

In Army of the Dead, Dieter was last seen coming face to face with the Zombie King. But fans are still unsure whether he was killed by the Alpha or managed to survive the nuclear strike that wiped out Las Vegas.

Dieter’s past, before the zombie outbreak, will be highlighted in the upcoming movie. The German locksmith became a fan favourite in Army of the Dead, stealing every scene he was in.

The character’s odd behaviour and unique perspectives intrigued his mates, who unanimously agreed that he was better at being a crook than killing zombies. Schweighöfer’s character also provided comic relief in the zombie heist thriller.

Meanwhile, Army of Thieves is expected to be a romantic comedy with just a few zombies, as expressed by producer Deborah Synder. The prequel movie features Schweighöfer opposite Nathalie Emmanuel as Gwendoline, who will play the former’s love interest.

The prequel’s narrative is foreshadowed in Army of the Dead where during Dieter’s introduction, we see Scott and Maria Cruz recruiting him at Gwendoline’s Safe & Lock Co.

As Emmanuel was not present in Army of the Dead, it looks like her character might not survive Army of Thieves. If that’s the case then her apparent death and transformation into a shambler would not only strengthen Dieter’s long-term character arc but may also explain why he’s never killed a zombie before.

Whatever the story, fans are excited to get a deeper look into Dieter’s life. While waiting for Army of Thieves, you can still catch Dieter’s character with Army of the Dead, streaming now on Netflix.