David Fincher has recently compared his cancelled World War Z sequel to HBO's The Last of Us TV series, saying he is pleased his movie didn't get beyond pre-production. He observed some notable similarities between his envisaged Brad Pitt-led sequel to World War Z and the HBO adaptation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us, to the point that he's happy his project didn't materialize, asserting that the latter had "more real estate" to deal with the same themes.

Despite being a commercial success in 2013, grossing over $540 million worldwide, the World War Z sequel faced multiple issues, leading to a halt in pre-production in 2019. Reportedly, budget constraints and lack of momentum were the primary reasons, even though the production was supposed to start the same year.

In contrast, The Last of Us became massively successful, with HBO promptly greenlighting a second season. The series averaged 30.4 million viewers across its initial six episodes, with its eagerly awaited season finale drawing in the most viewers. Showrunner Craig Mazin is open to creating spin-offs and has hinted that Part II will span several seasons, a major change compared to the first season narrating the whole story of the original game.