Maze Runner: The Death Cure

1
2

Directed by

Produced by

Wyck Godfrey
Marty Bowen
Joe Hartwick Jr.
Lee Stollman
Wes Ball
Eddie Gamarra
T.S. Nowlin
Lindsay Williams
Lorenzo di Bonaventura
Daniel M. Stillman
Adam Friedlander
Patrick B. Obrien

Paul Harb

Studio

Gotham Group

Temple Hill Entertainment Oddball Entertainment

Distributed by

20th Century Fox

Release Date(s)

January 26, 2018

Running time

142 minutes

Language

English

Budget

$62 million

Gross Revenue

$288.2 million

Film series
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Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials	Untitled Maze Runner Film

Spoiler Alert!
This page contains details about the plot which may lower your enjoyment of the books and/or movies. Discretion is advised.

"Newt: Where do you think you're going then?
Thomas: Newt...
Newt: Don't be a twat about it. I'm already in. Come on.
Thomas: No, no, not this time. Look, even if we find Minho, there's no guarantee we'll make it back from this.
Newt: Well, you'll need all the help you can get then, won't you? Well, we started this together. Might as well end it that way too."

— Newt to Thomas, The Death Cure

Maze Runner: The Death Cure, often named The Death Cure, is the third and final instalment of the Maze Runner Movies, based on the 2011 novel The Death Cure by James Dashner. The film was directed by Wes Ball from a screenplay written by T.S. Nowlin, and distributed by 20th Century Fox.

Filming began on March 14, 2016, and the film was originally set to be released in theatres February 17, 2017. However, due to the injuries Dylan O'Brien sustained while filming, the release date was pushed back by nearly a year. The precise date was changed several times, with the release date officially being January 26, 2018.^[2] The film has a runtime of 142 minutes.

Synopsis

Thomas leads some escaped Gladers on their final and most dangerous mission yet. To save their friends, they must break into the legendary Last City, a WCKD-controlled labyrinth that may turn out to be the deadliest maze of all. Anyone who makes it out alive will get answers to the questions that the Gladers have been asking since they arrived in the Maze.

Plot

Thomas, Newt, and Frypan are among the last of the free "Gladers". With the exception of Newt, they are all Immune to the Flare virus that has ravaged the world's population. Against the orders of Vince, the leader of the Right Arm, the three leave their camp to rescue their Immune friend Minho, who is being tortured by the organization WCKD in hopes of developing a Cure for the virus. Heading for the "Last City", where WCKD's Complex is located, the group is attacked by Cranks, humans infected with the Flare. However, they are saved by Brenda and Jorge, who joined them.

The group makes it to the wall of the Last City, which protects the city from Cranks. 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 crew members is revealed to be Gally, who has survived being impaled in the chest with a spear by Minho. After Thomas is stopped by Newt from beating up Gally in rage over Gally killing Chuck, Gally takes them and the rest of the group to meet Lawrence, a rebellion leader for those outside the walls, who grants Thomas, Newt, and Gally permission to enter the Last City through a secret entrance after hearing Thomas can get him more Bliss, while Frypan, Brenda, and Jorge stay behind. Gally leads Thomas and Newt through the city and, spotting Teresa, tells Thomas that she can get them into WCKD headquarters. Thomas and Gally capture her and she agrees to help them.

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 can treat the Flare, while Thomas, Teresa, and Newt go to find Minho. They are caught and chased by a vengeful Janson, who leads WCKD's troops. Teresa lets Thomas and Newt escape to find Minho, before rushing to do a blood test on Thomas' blood, which she obtained when removing trackers from the Gladers.

Gally gets the serum and takes the Immune children outside to a bus where Brenda is waiting. While Gally makes his way back into WCKD headquarters to find Thomas, Brenda is forced to leave with the Immune children in a bus as WCKD forces close in on them. Thomas and Newt reunite with Minho in the medical wing. They are chased by Janson before escaping. Teresa discovers that Thomas' blood can cure the Flare. She shares her discovery with WCKD's leader Ava Paige, both agreeing that they must find Thomas. Brenda and the Immune children are cornered by WCKD authorities but are saved by Frypan. Meanwhile, Lawrence rallies his rebels outside the city before blowing a hole in the city wall, allowing his allies and the infected people to storm the city. Outside the headquarters, Gally saves Thomas, Newt, and Minho from three WCKD soldiers. Thomas sends Minho and Gally ahead to get the serum from Brenda before Newt gives him a necklace with a silver cylinder pendant before passing out. Teresa transmits her voice throughout the city, telling Thomas that his blood can save Newt if he will only return to WCKD. Newt, nearly completely subsumed by the Flare, regains consciousness and attacks Thomas, while pleading Thomas to kill him. Left with no other option, Thomas kills Newt.

Thomas makes his way back to WCKD and confronts Ava, who stresses that WCKD's intentions are good. However, she is shot in the back by Janson, who is turning into a Crank, revealed by the black veins on his arms. Janson knocks Thomas out and drags him to a lab where Teresa is ready to extract his blood. However, he reveals that he and WCKD are only truly interested in curing those whom they please, which results in Teresa turning on him. After a fight and a chase through the complex, Thomas, Teresa, and Janson find themselves in one room together. Thomas discovers that Janson has shot him in the gut, and Teresa distracts Janson to help Thomas. Janson is about to kill Teresa, but Thomas throws a chair at a lane of glass, releasing two turned workers, who attack Janson, allowing Thomas and Teresa to escape to the rooftop where an aircraft piloted by Jorge, with Minho, Gally, Frypan, Brenda, Vince, and the Immunes in it, is waiting. Thomas makes it aboard, but Teresa falls to her death when the headquarters comes apart after being hit by a building collapsing owing to the rebels' attacks.

The group escapes with the rest of the Immunes and the Right Arm to a safe haven that was revealed by Ava, where the remaining population can live in safety. There, Thomas discovers that the pendant Newt gave him had a note in it. Still traumatized by both Teresa and Newt's deaths, he reads the note, in which Newt tells him to look after himself and everyone, before thanking Thomas for being his friend.

Cast

Production History

In October 2014, Wes Ball stated that if he did return to direct the film, the film would not be split into two separate movies.^[3]
On April 18, 2015, it was confirmed the film would be released on February 17, 2017, and would not be split into two parts.
On March 4, 2015, 20th Century Fox officially greenlit the third book. T.S. Nowlin would write the script.^[1]
On September 16, 2015, it was confirmed that Ball would return to direct the third film.
On January 18, 2016, it was announced that filming would begin on March 14, 2016.
On March 14, 2016, The Death Cure began filming in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
On March 18, production was placed on hold when Dylan O'Brien was severely injured while filming a stunt scene involving a car, where he fractured his cheekbone or orbital socket.^[4]
As of April 29, 2016, production has been delayed indefinitely to allow O'Brien to fully recover from his injuries. The film's release date was also delayed to January 12, 2018.
Production resumed on March 2, 2017, with filming taking place in South Africa.^[5]
In April 2017, Dashner confirmed on his Twitter that the movie's release date had been changed again, this time to February 9, 2018.
In August 2017, the release date was changed yet again, this time to January 26, 2018.^[2]
The first trailer was released on September 25, 2017.
The second and final trailer was released on December 8, 2017, before the film's release.

Trivia

Filming for Maze Runner: The Death Cure was stopped due to alarming injuries suffered by actor Dylan O'Brien, who portrays Thomas. Filming later resumed on March 2, 2017.