By Ryan Parsons | Image property of respective holders, Variety
Gears of War
Are we still waiting for an uber-successful vidgame adaptation? As far as I can tell, yes. New Line once proved that they could handle the biggest of franchises with Lord of the Rings -- though Golden Compass wasn't as er, golden -- and they are looking to find a hit in the popular first person shooter, Gears of War.
To start things off on the right note, the studio has picked up Len Wiseman to direct.
Len Wiseman to Direct Gears of War
Though Stuart Beattie already handed a script over to New Line, the studio is now looking to scribe Chris Morgan to pen a new draft. Morgan has some experience with adaptations, as it was he who tackled Universal's upcoming adaptation of the graphic novel Wanted. Not a vidgame, I know, but a start. Wiseman will work close to the scribe to deliver the best story possible.
Gears of War concerns a world reeling from an invasion by aliens known as the Locust. A small group of elite soldiers, including main character Marcus Fennix, who is rescued from prison at the beginning of the game, fight to retake the planet Sera for its surviving humans. Though the story is only touched upon during gameplay, Epic has already developed an extensive backstory it hopes to utilize in the film.
Gears of War is Microsoft's second-biggest seller right behind the Halo franchise, which 20th Century Fox at one point tried to adapt.
Though New Line has owned the film rights to the game for some time, this is the first big step in its pre-production. The studio had hoped for a summer 2009 release, but further development will likely push the project's theatrical release deep into 2010.
"It's like with our games, you can have it right or have it right now," said Epic Games topper Mark Rein. "We want to get it right. There's no timetable for us. We just want to make as good a movie as we can, and we think (Wiseman's) the guy who will do it."
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