''Maze Runner'' is a North American film trilogy, consisting of

science-fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel univers ...

dystopian A dystopia (from Ancient Greek δυσ- "bad, hard" and τόπος "place"; alternatively cacotopiaCacotopia (from κακός ''kakos'' "bad") was the term used by Jeremy Bentham in his 1818 Plan of Parliamentary Reform (Works, vol. 3, p. 493). ...

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

s based on ''The Maze Runner'' novels by the American author

James Dashner James Smith Dashner (born November 26, 1972) is an American writer known for speculative fiction. Many of his books are primarily aimed at children or young adults. He is best known for ''The Maze Runner'' series and the young adult fantasy ser ...

. Produced by

Ellen Goldsmith-Vein Ellen Goldsmith-Vein (born 1963) is an American television and film producer. She is the founder and CEO of the Gotham Group, a management company. As the only woman to own her own management company, with over 40 employees, Goldsmith-Vein was t ...

and distributed by

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

, the films star

Dylan O'Brien Dylan Rhodes O'Brien (born August 26, 1991) is an American actor. His first major role was Stiles Stilinski on the MTV supernatural drama ''Teen Wolf'' (2011–2017), where he was a series regular during all six seasons. He achieved further p ...

Kaya Scodelario Kaya Rose Scodelario-Davis ( née Humphrey; born 13 March 1992) is an English actress best known for her roles as Effy Stonem on the E4 teen drama '' Skins'' (2007–2010, 2013), and Teresa in the ''Maze Runner'' film series (2014–2018). Ot ...

Thomas Brodie-Sangster Thomas Brodie-Sangster (born 16 May 1990), also credited as Thomas Sangster, is an English actor. He is known for playing Sam in ''Love Actually'' (2003), Simon in ''Nanny McPhee'' (2005), Ferb in ''Phineas and Ferb'' (2007–2015), Jojen Reed ...

Ki Hong Lee Ki Hong Lee (born September 30, 1986) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Minho in the ''Maze Runner'' film series and Dong Nguyen in the Netflix sitcom ''Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt''. Early life and education Lee was born i ...

Dexter Darden Dexter Darden is an American actor, best known for playing the role of Walter Hill in '' Joyful Noise,'' and Frypan in the ''Maze Runner'' film series. Personal life Dexter was engaged to singer/actress JoJo, they split in November 2022 ...

, and

Patricia Clarkson Patricia Davies Clarkson (born December 29, 1959) is an American actress. She has starred in numerous leading and supporting roles in a variety of films ranging from independent film features to major film studio productions. Her accolades incl ...

Wes Ball Wes Ball (born October 28, 1980) is an American film director, visual effects artist and graphic artist. He is best known for directing the ''Maze Runner'' film trilogy, based on James Dashner's series of novels of the same name. Ball's next fil ...

directed all three films. The first film, ''

The Maze Runner ''The Maze Runner'' is a 2009 young adult dystopian science fiction novel written by American author James Dashner and the first book released in ''The Maze Runner'' series. The novel was published on October 6, 2009, by Delacorte Press, an i ...

'', was released on September 19, 2014 and became a commercial success grossing over $348million worldwide. The second film, '' Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials'' was released on September 18, 2015, and was also a success, grossing over $312million worldwide. The film series concluded with the release of the third film, '' Maze Runner: The Death Cure'' on January 26, 2018, which grossed $288million worldwide.

Films

''The Maze Runner'' (2014)

The film features Thomas, who wakes up trapped in a maze with a group of other boys. He has no memory of the outside world other than dreams about an organization known as WCKD (World Catastrophe Killzone Department). Only by piecing together fragments of his past with clues he discovers in the maze can Thomas hope to uncover his purpose and a way to escape. Development for the film began in January 2011 when

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

purchased the film rights to Dashner's novel ''

''.

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

began in

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties i ...

in May 2013 and ended in July. It was released on September 19, 2014.

''Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials'' (2015)

The film features Thomas and his fellow Gladers as they search for clues about the organization known as WCKD. Their journey takes them to the Scorch, a desolate landscape filled with obstacles. Teaming up with resistance fighters, the Gladers take on WCKD's "vastly superior" forces and uncover its plans for them all. Principal photography commenced in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

, in October 2014 and ended in January 2015. It was released on September 18, 2015.

''Maze Runner: The Death Cure'' (2018)

In the finale to the ''Maze Runner'' saga, Thomas leads his group of 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 safe zone designed to keep people out. They attempt to enter to rescue their friends, seeking answers to the questions the Gladers have been asking since they first arrived in the maze. In March 2015,

T.S. Nowlin Thomas Scott Nowlin is an American screenwriter. He is known for writing the screenplays such as ''Maze Runner'' film series, '' Pacific Rim: Uprising'' and ''The Adam Project''. Early life and career Nowlin went to Florida State University. ...

, who co-wrote the first and wrote the second film, was hired to write ''Maze Runner: The Death Cure'' based on the novel ''

The Death Cure ''The Death Cure'' is a 2011 young adult dystopian science fiction novel written by American writer James Dashner and the third published in the ''Maze Runner'' series (the fifth and last in narrative order). It was published on 11 October ...

''. In September 2015, Ball was hired to direct the film. Ball said that the film would not be split into two films. Principal photography took place in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

between March and June 2017 for a January 26, 2018 release.

Future

Following the

acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney The acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney was announced on December 14, 2017, and was completed on March 20, 2019. Among other key assets, the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by the Walt Disney Company included the 20th Century Fox film and ...

in March 2019, Disney announced in April 2019 at their

CinemaCon The National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) is an American trade organization whose members are the owners of movie theaters. Most of the worldwide List of movie theater chains, major theater chains' operators are members, as are hundreds ...

presentation that new ''Maze Runner'' films are in development.

Recurring cast and characters

Crew

Music

Reception

Box office performance

All ''Maze Runner'' films opened at number one at the North American box office during their opening weekend. In North America, the ''Maze Runner'' film series is the fifth-highest-grossing film series based on young adult books, after the film series of ''

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

'', ''

The Hunger Games ''The Hunger Games'' is a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The first three novels are part of a trilogy following teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and the fourth book is a prequel set ...

'', ''

The Twilight Saga The Twilight Saga may refer to: * ''Twilight'' (novel series), a novel series by Stephenie Meyer. * ''The Twilight Saga'' (film series), a film series on based the novel series by Stephenie Meyer * '' The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated ...

'', and ''

The Divergent Series ''The Divergent Series'' is a feature film series based on the '' Divergent'' novels by the American author Veronica Roth. Distributed by Summit Entertainment and Lionsgate Films, the series consists of three science fiction action films set in ...

'', respectively, earning $242million. Worldwide, it is the fourth-highest-grossing film series based on young-adult books, after the film series of ''Harry Potter'', ''The Twilight Saga'', and ''The Hunger Games'', respectively, earning $949million from a $157million total production budget.

Critical and public response

The ''Maze Runner'' trilogy has received a mixed critical response, with the primary source of criticism being the plot and character development, although its performances and action sequences have been praised.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maze Runner (film series), The

Series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used i ...

20th Century Studios franchises Action film series Mystery film series Science fiction film series Teen film series Thriller film series Film series introduced in 2014 Trilogies