‘Maze Runner’ Sequel Hits The Big Screen In 2015

It’s official: The Maze Runner sequel is headed to the big screen next year. In fact, we already have a release date to share with the masses.

As soon as director Wes Ball’s adaptation of James Dashner’s young adult novel was officially announced as the number one movie in the U.S. last weekend, the folks over at 20th Century Fox decided to give the follow-up the proverbial greenlight. In fact, fans of The Maze Runner will get a sequel sooner rather than later.

According to MTV News, Maze Runner: Scorch Trials is presently slated to hit theaters across North America on September 18, 2015. This gives Ball and company a ridiculously short amount of time to get everything filmed and pieced together. However, the director previously revealed that he’s already hard at work on the follow-up.

“We’ve got stages, we’ve got crews coming in, Dylan [O’Brien] will be back in a few weeks, we’re building sets, and the script is being written. It’s a bit of a race this time because we’re cautiously optimistic, but we’re feeling excited we’re about to do something that’s way more sophisticated, way more grown up, and really set up a saga here.”

In case you haven’t heard, Maze Runner made a tidy sum of money last weekend, both at home and abroad. As of this writing, the flick has generated an impressive $34 million at the domestic box office, while its foreign haul is presently perched at $49 million. Altogether, this adds up to an impressive $83 million. Considering the flick only cost around $34 million to produce, it’s no surprise the sequel is moving forward.

HitFix explains that the Maze Runner sequel will follow the adventures of our teenage heroes as they begin to experience life outside of the maze. If you haven’t seen the movie or read the book yet, then you might want to skip the following synopsis for Scorch Trials. In short: There are spoilers lurking in the passages below.

“Burned by sun flares and baked by a new, brutal climate, the earth is a wasteland. Government has disintegrated-and with it, order-and now Cranks, people covered in festering wounds and driven to murderous insanity by the infectious disease known as the Flare, roam the crumbling cities hunting for their next victim… and meal.

“The Gladers are far from finished with running. Instead of freedom, they find themselves faced with another trial. They must cross the Scorch, the most burned-out section of the world, and arrive at a safe haven in two weeks. And WICKED has made sure to adjust the variables and stack the odds against them.

“Thomas can only wonder-does he hold the secret of freedom somewhere in his mind? Or will he forever be at the mercy of WICKED?”

Are you planning to catch Maze Runner: Scorch Trials on the big screen next year? What did you think about Wes Ball’s adaptation of James Dashner’s novel?

[Lead image via 20th Century Fox]