Is Dieter Going to Appear in 'Planet of the Dead' or Did He Die?

Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Army of the Dead.

Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead arrived on Netflix on May 21, 2021, immediately sweeping viewers off their feet.

The horror-action movie chronicles a handful of criminals' attempts to snatch up $200 million worth of cash tucked away inside a Las Vegas casino vault. The only catch? The city has been conquered by zombies. So, which criminals make it out alive? Does Dieter (aka Sebastian Schlencht-Wöhnert) die in Army of the Dead?

Praised for its tight-paced editing and sweat-inducing action scenes, Army of the Dead quickly became one of the most-watched movies on Netflix. A crucial scene finds fan-favorite Dieter mid-duel with zombie head honcho Zeus (Richard Cetrone). So, what happens next? Does Dieter survive the harrowing encounter?

Dieter's impromptu encounter with Zeus could have ended on an ugly note — but did it? As Zack Snyder emphasized in an interview with Inverse, no dead body was shown on camera — which is a relatively common rhetorical strategy deployed by filmmakers about to resuscitate a main character.

"We don't see [Dieter] die on camera, and there's still some time left," Zack said. "I won't tell you what happens in Army of the Dead 2 (aka Planet of the Dead), but let's just say that there’s a chance Dieter survives. And there's a chance that brush with death would have caused him to want to find a jailed Gwendoline."

"Army of Thieves theory: Zack [Snyder] has said that Dieter has a freakish super ability to crack safes. He's the only person ever who has cracked and found Hans Wagner's Ring Cycle safes. Easily too. Army of the Dead teased time travel/loops. My theory is that Dieter is Wagner, and he's in a loop," tweeted @Uber_Kryptonian.

Taking place six years before the bloodied robbery captured in Army of the Dead, Army of Thieves zooms in on the adrenaline-drenched adventures of a group of high profile criminals.

A fresh-faced Dieter gets recruited into the dream team, allowing him to finally showcase his skills as a lockpicker mastermind and work his magic on some of the most secure bank vaults around the world. As Army of Thieves reveals, Dieter also goes by the name of Sebastian Schlencht-Wöhnert.

Accompanying Dieter on his new adventures is Korina (Ruby O. Fee), the hacker extraordinaire with an impeccable wig game; Brad (Stuart Martin), the resident muscleman; and Rolph (Guz Khan), the most steady-handed driver there is. And, of course, there is Gwendoline (Nathalie Emmanuel).

The flick focuses on the goosebump-inducing heists. A handful of scenes explore Dieter's blossoming affair with Gwendoline. Plus, there's the occasional flashback.

"Really wasn’t expecting Army of the Dead and Army of Thieves to be as good as they were, but yes please, give me more Zack Snyder," tweeted @withsubtitles.