If you’re a fan of dystopian sci-fi, you’ve probably heard of the Maze Runner franchise. The hit film trilogy, adapted from James Dashner’s novels of the same name, kicked off in 2014 and spanned three epic adventures before concluding with 2018’s The Death Cure. Ever since, fans far and wide have taken to the net to wonder if we’ll ever get a fourth installment. Rumors, false starts and fake AI-generated trailers have flooded chatrooms and YouTube channels centered around the fandom, leaving very little in the way of actual confirmation.

Since the films each managed to bring in tons of money at the box office, it seems like a no-brainer for 20th Century Fox to greenlight more. Now that it’s been over eight years since the last Maze Runner film, however, it seems like as good a time as any to dig through the public information about the future of the franchise, and speculate on what’s coming next. Be sure to read ahead as we outline the plot, characters and background behind the Maze Runner trilogy, and ruminate on how the series can continue.

Where does ‘The Maze Runner’ take place?

The Maze Runner opens with a teenage boy named Thomas waking up in an underground elevator with his memory completely erased. He doesn’t know who he is, where he’s going or how he arrived in the elevator. When the doors open up, he steps onto a large grassy plain, which is populated by several other young men. The boys inform Thomas that the area is called the “Glade,” and explain their Lord of the Flies-style society.

Life on the Glade centers around an enormous maze which shifts into new patterns during the night. A group of kids known as the Runners is tasked with exploring the maze during the daytime and fending off biomechanical creatures called Greivers, which are capable of infecting humans with a deadly toxin. Shortly after Thomas’ arrival, a young girl named Teresa is sent to the Glade, throwing the entire society into disarray. Leaders debate whether to sacrifice the new arrivals to restore peace, as Thomas slowly regains his memories.

In the original Maze Runner novels, the Glade was eventually revealed to be part of an experiment held deep underground beneath Alaska. The film, on the other hand, portrays the Glade as a vast, open-air grassland on the Earth’s surface. To construct the Glade, the filmmakers created a massive set on a soundstage in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, per SlashFilm, allowing them to alter the environment to suit the narrative’s needs digitally.

In the second film, The Scorch Trials, Thomas and a few of his peers manage to get out of the Glade, where they find themselves surrounded by a harrowing desert wasteland. Unlike the first film, the desert scenes were captured in and around Albuquerque, New Mexico, at sites including the Albuquerque Rail Yard and the Jemez Mountains.

Why did Thomas create the maze?

As stated, Thomas and his crew manage to escape from the maze at the end of the first Maze Runner movie. In doing so, they come face-to-face with Ava Paige and Janson, the directors of the World Catastrophe Killzone Department. Thomas and Teresa can recover their full memories and even realize that they worked alongside WCKD to build the maze before being sent into it. In fact, there are dozens of mazes scattered all around the globe, each designed to run experiments on human test subjects. In the second film, The Scorch Trials, it is revealed that Earth has suffered a catastrophic climate event, with most human beings succumbing to an illness known as the Flare virus.

Having bested the maze, Thomas and the group head to WCKD headquarters, where they meet with several other survivors, each with their own immunity to the Flare gene. Of course, Thomas comes to distrust the WCKD directors and leads his crew out into the wasteland in search of more answers. Once they make it to the outside world, the gang is forced to fight against scorching weather conditions, WCKD soldiers, armed militia groups and infected individuals known as Cranks. Several of Thomas’s own friends turn out to be WCKD double agents, revealing the group’s locations and intentions to the evil corporation at every turn.

What are cranks in ‘The Maze Runner’?

Cranks are humans who have become infected with an incurable strain of the Flare virus. As a result, they are effectively zombies, mindlessly roaming the wastelands and violently lurching at any survivors they encounter. Cranks can even pass the infection to immune individuals via bites, which causes a variety of headaches for Thomas and company as they travel through the desert.

Eventually, Thomas manages to meet with the head of a militia group called the Right Arm, who seeks to dismantle WCKD’s entire operation. Disillusioned with the company’s lies, Thomas agrees to work alongside the Right Arm, though Teresa still believes that WCKD is the best hope for humanity. She surreptitiously gives away their location to the company, allowing them to track down the Right Arm’s headquarters and mount an attack.

During the skirmish, Teresa ends up leaving with a group of WCKD mercenaries, who also kidnap Thomas’s friend, Minho. The soldiers ultimately retreat after suffering some losses and head back to their base of operations. From there, the Right Arm informs Thomas that WCKD scientists are conducting research for a cure in the “Last City.” This city is a settlement located in the desert, serving as one of the last remaining vestiges of industrial civilization. Along with a rag-tag crew of Gladers and mercenaries, Thomas drives out to the city and breaks into WCKD headquarters, determined to save his friends.

Who dies in ‘Maze Runner 3’? Who does Thomas end up with?

Naturally, things go sideways pretty fast once the gang arrives in the Last City. The mercenaries cover the perimeter, fending off hundreds of Cranks, while Thomas and the others confront Janson. Janson reveals that WCKD has continued running cruel experiments on Minho in an effort to develop a cure for the Flare virus. In a shocking turn of events, we then learn that Thomas’ blood contains the enzyme needed to unlock the cure. Unfortunately, Janson attempts to hoard the resources for the serum, causing the Gladers to lash out and attack him.

Janson is then killed when Cranks storm the city and overrun the lab. Outside, the mercenaries set fire to the building, determined to contain the spread. Just as a helicopter arrives on the roof to save Thomas and the others, the flames cause the structure to collapse.

Having seen the error of her ways, Teresa sacrifices herself so Thomas can board the chopper. She goes down with the WCKD building, along with any hope of developing a cure. With WCKD officially destroyed, Thomas and the others fly off into the sunset, prepared to find peace in the chaos of the new world. Eventually, the immune survivors reach a remote island, where they can safely rebuild a small civilization.

Thomas settles down with Brenda, a fellow immune survivor, and they seem to live happily ever after. In the end, Thomas and his peers manage to make the serene community of Glade a reality, without the giant, terrifying maze.

Will there be another ‘Maze Runner’ movie?

As of this writing, it’s been over seven years since we’ve last had a Maze Runner installment in theaters. Rumors have continued to circulate regarding a possible sequel or reboot, though nothing has been officially confirmed. A May 2025 update in The Hollywood Reporter indicated that Disney has begun probing writers for a potential reboot, with Transcendence screenwriter Jack Paglen tapped for the task.

Franchise director Wes Ball is also rumored to return as a producer. Even still, no official pre-production schedule has been released, meaning this reboot could still die on the vine. For now, there’s no concrete confirmation that we’ll get another Maze Runner project in the near future, even though the franchise has proven to be a guaranteed money maker.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many movies are in The Maze Runner series?

At this time, there are three Maze Runner films. These include The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials and The Death Cure, which released in 2014, 2015 and 2018 respectively.

How did Ben get stung in The Maze Runner?

During the first film in the franchise, Ben is attacked by a Griever. This is a surprise to the young man, as Grievers don’t typically appear in the maze during the daytime. Ben is also a builder in the story, not a runner, so he was woefully unequipped to handle a one-on-one encounter with the terrifying creatures.

How old was Newt in The Maze Runner?

Newt’s age is never explicitly stated in the Maze Runner franchise, although he is estimated to be roughly 17 to 19 years old. He is frequently said to be slightly older than his peers, but younger than 20. This is the case for both the novels and the films.

The Maze Runner

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