'Divergent' Final Sequel 'Allegiant' To Be Split Into Two Movies
The third and final book in the Divergent series, Allegiant, is to be split into two films, Lionsgate/Summit have decided. Veronica Roth's YA dystopian fiction has already been given the Hollywood treatment with the box office smash hit Divergent but the author will see her stories turned into four movies altogether, following the example of similar fantasy franchises, Harry Potter and Twilight.
Shailene Woodley stars as Tris Prior, the young heroine in Roth's novels, and will be expected to reprise her critically praised role in each of the films in the planned quadrilogy. The film as a whole didn't fare particularly well at the hands of critics however, so it will be interesting to see whether Neil Burger remains attached to the projects.
Check out photos from the 'Divergent' premiere in London.
Equally, having been shot to stardom with her lead role in the first film, the 22 year-old Woodley's evolution as a budding actress could mean that she experiences a similar career arc to the popular, Oscar-winning Jennifer Lawrence, star of the Hunger Games films.
Watch The 'Divergent' Trailer:
"Veronica Roth brings her captivating story to a masterful conclusion in Allegiant, a rich, action-packed book with material that is ideally suited to two strong and fulfilling movies," said Friedman and Wachsberger, via Deadline.
Read our review of 'Divergent.'
"The storytelling arc and world of the characters lend themselves perfectly to two films, a storytelling strategy that has worked very well for us on the two Twilight Breaking Dawn films and about which we're tremendously enthusiastic for the two upcoming Mockingjay films of The Hunger Games franchise."
Lionsgate had previously set Allegiant for a release on the 18th March 18, 2016 but with the new decision in mind, Allegiant Part 1 will keep that date, with the separately produced Part 2 to follow on the 24th March 2017.
The Box Office Success Of 'Divergent' Has Bolstered Confidence In The Franchise.
The first picture scored an impressive $117M domestic and $139M worldwide in the three weeks since its opening, with release still to come in many big territories. Following the trend of author book adaptations, interest in Roth's work has soared with nearly 20 million copies of her best-selling series sold worldwide.
Divergent is out in cinemas now.
More: Hear Veronica Roth discuss her successful YA series in our featurette.
More: Why was Shailene Woodley purposefully homeless for two months?