Army of the Dead: Zack Snyder Reveals How He Convinced Dave Bautista to Join the Film Of the various elements of Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead that have excited audiences, Dave Bautista's performance is arguably the most compelling component, though Snyder recently detailed how the performer nearly turned down the opportunity entirely when he was initially pitched the project. Snyder would go on to note that it wasn't until he detailed to Bautista that it wasn't merely a horror spectacle but a story with a lot of emotion, which convinced the actor to read the script, ultimately resulting in him expressing interest in joining the adventure.