Lionsgate has picked up the rights to the upcoming film adaptation of SEGA’s iconic “Streets of Rage” arcade beat ’em up game franchise.
“John Wick” creator and “Nobody” scribe Derek Kolstad penned the script on spec based on the 1991 side-scroller, which follows former police offers who battle a crime syndicate.
Plot specifics of the film are under wraps. “Sonic” films producer dj2 Entertainment and “The Equalizer” films producer Escape Artists will produce the movie.
Kolstad, Toru Nakahara, Dmitri M. Johnson, Timothy I. Stevenson, Dan Jevons, Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, and Tony Shaw are all producing.
The most recent entry in the game series, “Streets of Rage 4,” was released in 2020 and sold well along with scoring much acclaim.
Source: Deadline
Source: Lionsgate Snags The “Streets of Rage” Film – Dark Horizons
“Gears of War,” one of the most popular Xbox video game series of all time, is expanding to Netflix.
Netflix is making a feature film adaptation followed by an adult animation series based on the sci-fi shooter franchise, the company announced Monday. The streamer also notes there is “potential for more stories to follow.”
Video game developer The Coalition, who took the reins on “Gears of War” after Microsoft acquired the rights to the series from original creator Epic Games, has partnered with Netflix on the upcoming adaptations.
The first “Gears of War” released exclusively on the Xbox 360 in 2006 and followed a macho team of soldiers called Delta Squad fighting against the Locust Horde, a subterranean alien race that decimates humanity. The main Delta Squad crew consisted of Marcus Fenix, Dominic “Dom” Santiago, Augustus Cole and Damon Baird. They used a variety of heavy-duty firearms, rocket launchers and lancers — which are rifles with chainsaws attached to them — to dispatch the Locust swarms.
Across five main entries and several spinoffs, the “Gears of War” franchise has sold more than 40 million copies, making it one of the most popular Xbox franchises. The games, which also boast co-operative modes that let players take on the Locust Horde with a friend, are credited with revolutionizing the third-person shooter video game genre. The Netflix news comes on the 16th anniversary of the original “Gears of War” game.
There have been multiple attempts throughout the years to bring “Gears of War” to the big screen. New Line Cinema briefly had the rights to a film adaptation in 2007, and then Scott Stuber, now head of original films at Netflix, came on as a producer in 2013 with Epic Games. Universal then hired F. Scott Frazier to write an adaptation in 2018, but no other moves were made. Netflix did not announce any filmmakers attached to its adaptation.
Source: ‘Gears of War’ Gets Netflix Movie, TV Show – Variety
“Every time I do bump into Danny or Alex I always mention it,” Murphy said about the next film. “Because I showed it to my kids recently, some Halloween about four or five years ago, and they loved it. It really stands up, which is amazing for a film that’s 20 years old. So yeah, I love the idea and it’s very appealing to me.”
“[‘28 Months Later’] might come back into focus because one of the things that’s happening in the business at the moment is it has to be a big reason for you to go to the cinema, because there are less and less reasons,” Garland continued. “It’s hard for companies distributing films and for cinema chains to show films, they’re struggling to get people into the cinema unless it’s something like ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ or a Marvel. But a third part would get people in, if it was half-decent.”
“28 Days Later” is widely regarded as one of the best horror movies of the 2010s. Murphy plays a bike courier who awakens from a coma to discover England is in apocalyptic ruin due to a zombie virus. The film made $85 million at the worldwide box office on a production budget of only $8 million. Garland, Murphy and Boyle sat out the 2007 sequel, “28 Weeks Later,” which was directed Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, but the film kept acclaim high for the zombie franchise.
Garland first stirred up buzz for a third “28 Days Later” movie in 2015 when he told IGN, “We’ve just started talking about it seriously. We’ve got an idea. Danny [Boyle] and [producer] Andrew [Macdonald] and I have been having quite serious conversations about it so it is a possibility. It’s complicated. … It’s more likely to be ‘28 Months’ than ‘28 Years.’ 28 months gives you one more place to go.”
Given Murphy is 20 years older now from when the first movie opened in theaters, perhaps “28 Years Later” is the route to take after all.
Source: 28 Months Later: Danny Boyle, Cillian Murphy Say Script Is Appealing – Variety

French graphic novel series “Monstre” is set to be adapted into a premium TV show.
Trioscope, the hybrid-tech studio behind Netflix’s “The Liberator” and the George R. R. Martin-produced “Night of the Cooters,” will adapt “Le Sommeil du monstre,” the first instalment of award-winning French graphic novelist Enki Bilal’s sci-fi “Monstre” tetralogy.
Collaborating with the author and illustrator on what is touted as his most personal work, Trioscope will introduce TV viewers to the complex world of Bilal’s “Monster.”
“Monster” will transport viewers to a futuristic world where protagonist Nike Hatzfeld, a man with the unique ability to recall every memory since the day he was born, finds himself using his gift to make sense of his orphaned past to survive the chaotic and savage present. His story intertwines with Leyla and Amir, born just days apart from him in the same orphanage bed and also parentless amidst the bombs of Sarajevo in 1993 during the Yugoslav Wars. Considered expendable and manipulated by a radical organization that’s trying to eradicate science and truth from the world, the trio’s lives split into divergent paths before they reunite once more.
Published across a nine-year period, from 1998 to 2007, the French-language, bestselling “Monster” (or “Hatzfeld”) tetralogy is one of Bilal’s most iconic works, with the second book in the series printing more than 280,000 copies.
The show will draw visual inspiration from Bilal’s distinctive style and world building. Trioscope will elevate the author’s original story by fusing nuanced, live-action performances with CG environments.
Bilal, who has directed the sci-fi feature films “Immortal” and “Tykho Moon,” will serve as executive producer. Greg Jonkajtys, Trioscope’s chief creative officer and co-founder, will serve as executive producer and is attached as director.
Jonkajtys directed Netflix’s WWII series “The Liberator” and is directing the action feature “Takeover,” starring Quavo. Frédéric Puech will serve as executive producer for Something Big, the French production company that is producing alongside Trioscope Europe.
“Enki is a true master at creating darkly rich and provocative worlds,” said Trioscope’s Greg Jonkajtys, director and EP of “Monster.”
“We’re honored by the opportunity for our tech platform and creative team to help bring ‘Monstre’ to life as a stylized live-action series that not only will captivate a broad TV audience, but also offer fans of the book an immersive new way to experience Enki’s beloved masterpiece.”

In this episode AJ reviews Fantastic Beasts: The Secret of Dumbledore and The Northman.


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In this episode AJ reviews Morbius, Ambulance, Sonic The Hedgehog 2, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, and Everything Everywhere All At Once .





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