It doesn’t matter if you’re a greenie, a runner, or if you have no idea what either of those words means. That’s still one of many central mysteries plaguing the group of unlucky boys stranded in the Glade of The Maze Runner — a new film from director Wes Ball based on novelist James Dashner’s hugely popular dystopian series. The story opens with a disoriented teen trapped in an elevator. He only knows his name: Thomas.
Soon Thomas (Teen Wolf’s Dylan O’Brien) finds himself among a group of boys, all living in a field surrounded by impossibly high walls. It’s a maze, and no one knows why they are there or how to get out. Mythologies swirl and the stakes keep rising as the boys try to uncover the mysteries of their plight. It doesn’t help that things “start changing” when Thomas arrives. To describe much more could spoil things for the uninitiated—but now that the trailer has finally arrived, Maze Runner devotees have a treasure trove of clues to dissect.
James Dashner was nice enough to talk to EW about the trailer, his favorite parts, and all the details that will leave die-hard fans either howling or scratching their heads. Check out Dashner’s deep dive after the jump:
James Dashner: The trailer begins just like the book did. Although I described the opening sequence as total darkness in the book, that wouldn’t make very good sense for a movie. I think Wes Ball captured the spirit of that pivotal opening moment so perfectly, showing the terror in Thomas’s eyes and the dirt and sweat and jerky movements of it all. The sounds are so perfect, cranking and squealing and metallic jolts. I got chills when the doors opened.
Dashner: I saw so much footage throughout the process without sound, and something that always struck me was how well Dylan O’Brien can act, just with his facial expressions and body movements alone. This guy is a star, period.
Dashner: More than anything else, the capture of the Maze walls as Thomas spins around matches my vision 100 percent. I can’t believe how perfectly they nailed that in this film.
Dashner: Two quick things you might notice: There’s a large treehouse/lookout thing in the Glade that’s cool and becomes symbolic in a way…
…and people have scratched their names into one of the walls.
Dashner: You also hear a brief roar of the Griever, which is exactly how I imagined it.
Dashner: People are going to go nuts when they hear Newt (Thomas Brodie-Sangster) speak for the first time. He and Minho are fan favorites in the books by a long shot.
Dasnher: Appropriately, right after that you see Minho (Ki Hong Lee) run into the Maze, then you see him studying a model scale of the maze that was one of my favorite set pieces. That’s a perfect example of a small change from book to movie that makes such good sense. In the book, the maps were on paper. Well, that’s beyond boring on the big screen. Much better to have a big, 3-D model!
Dasnher: Next, you get two really quick shots that will make people howl and speculate. First, walls closing on someone inside the Maze. I don’t wanna say who that is, but fans will probably guess…
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