Dead Space is one of the scariest games of the 21st century, so it’s no surprise that John Carpenter wants to adapt it into a movie. The beloved horror director has often discussed his love of video games, and whether anyone should make a big one Dead Space adaptation, he is.
However, filmmakers have often transitioned into video game development and production, and there are many examples of famous directors who have written, directed, and even created their own games. Between Peter Jackson working closely with the team developing tie-ins for his films, John Woo directing video game sequels to his classics, and Steven Spielberg continuing his interest in World War II with first-person shooters, these filmmakers know no bounds.
Peter Jackson – Peter Jackson’s King Kong (2005)
With his name literally in the title of the video game, it’s hardly surprising that Lord of the Rings the director had a big hand in creating Peter Jackson’s King Kong. Tie-in video games are never that good, and they’re mostly just another tool to promote the movie, but 2005 King Kong was one of the most immersive video game adaptations of a movie ever.
In an interview with Gamespot, Jackson revealed that he was heavily involved in creating the game. The director noted, “The creative process for gameplay is actually very similar to filmmaking. What this has done is allowed us to really look at key scenes from both the cinematic and interactive perspectives and hopefully offer viewers the best of both worlds.” Jackson even had game developers on set for the film, so both the film crew and developers were involved in each other’s projects.
John Woo – Stranglehold (2007)
Woo didn’t just direct Throttle ceilingthe 2007 third-person action game, but the video game is even a sequel to one of the filmmaker’s best films, Hard boiled. It was such a unique and exciting shooter, and Woo had even planned another video game sequel with the title Gun Runnerbut Midway Studios unfortunately canceled development (via Eurogamer).
Given that Stranglehold is a sequel to Hard boiled, it would be great to see Woo direct a film adaptation, and given how exciting the game is, it could be a great comeback. It would also set a precedent, because while there have been many video game sequels to movies, there has certainly never been a film adaptation of a video game sequel to a movie before.
John McTiernan – Ghost Recon: Wildlands (2017)
John McTiernan is best known for directing one of the greatest holiday movies ever, Die hard. And while it’s the crown jewel of his filmography, he’s long been the best action director in Hollywood, so it’s no surprise that Ubisoft hired the filmmaker to direct the trailer for a Tom Clancy video game, Ghost Recon: Wildlands.
It’s the only thing McTiernan has directed in the last 20 years, since his last film was from 2003 Basic. The trailer doesn’t necessarily feature any of McTiernan’s trademarks in the trailer, and the filmmaker may have been hired to create headlines and get word of mouth about the video game circulating in other corners of the internet.
Edgar Wright – Death Stranding (2019)
Interestingly, Edgar Wright did not direct the video game, nor did he guest star in the trailer, which has become a common trend in the video game industry. Instead Shaun of the Dead and Baby driver the director plays a character in the game. It’s only a small role, but it’s still a central role. Wright plays a porter who gives Sam a truck after helping him with some tasks.
Death Stranding is packed with movie stars and filmmakers. Along with an impressive all-star cast that includes Wright and even Conan O’Brien, Guillermo del Toro, director of Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinthand many other creature features, also have a small role.
Spike Lee – NBA 2K16 (2015)
The last thing on players’ minds when it comes to annual sports releases, that is FIFA or Madden NFL, that’s the story mode. Sports games are mostly played among friends or online, but EA took a surprising amount of care when it came to it NBA 2K16.
Spike Lee is as famous for his basketball obsession as he is for incredible and thought-provoking movies, so he was the best choice to lead an engaging story for the basketball game’s campaign mode. But ironically, most critics praised the game in general but criticized the MyCareer mode, noting that the dialogue was clunky and the narrative fell flat.
James Gunn – Lollipop Chainsaw (2012)
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy could have been much better if James Gunn, director of the MCU movies, had a big hand in the story, but Gunn left his signature comedy in the video game industry in a different way. The horror comedy expert wrote the hack-and-slash game Lollipop chainsaw.
The movie was very Buffy the Vampire Slayer– inspired, as players controlled a badass cheerleader, only she fought zombies instead of vampires. The game shows how much Gunn was born to write material for Harley Quinn in the DCEU as well, as the two characters have extremely similar personalities, and he went on to write and direct The Suicide Squad.
John Carpenter – FEAR 3 (2011)
Not only does the legendary director want to make one Dead Space movie, but fans think John Carpenter should adapt BioShock also. But even though there’s so much talk about adaptations, it’s the closest he’s come with his work FEAR 3. While he did not create history, according to Engadgetwas the filmmaker consulted when it came to creating the sequences and even the script.
That’s hardly surprising, as Carpenter clearly loves the video game series. The horror auteur spoke to IGN about his obsession with the first game, explaining: “The graphics are incredible. They’re fabulous. The gameplay is extraordinary. This is really, really hot. It’s really scary and it’s really fun to play. It’s the scariest game I have hat played.”
Guillermo Del Toro – PT (2014)
Del Toro threw himself into video games when he co-directed the survival horror short, PT The 2014 video game is essentially a glorified demo, as it was a teaser for a sub-development Silent Hill game, Silent Hills. However, when the development of that game was discontinued, PT is subsequently seen as its own game.
A full part Toro-directed Silent Hill Games are what dreams are made of. The director is best known for creating imaginative movie monsters, whether it’s Pale Man in Pan’s Labyrinth or the Amphibian Man i The shape of the water. So Silent Hills could potentially be even better than the crown jewel of the series, Silent Hill 2.
James Wan – Dead Space (2008)
Carpenter may be the envy of the younger generation of horror filmmakers, because while he would love to work on the film adaptation of the 2008 game, James Wan, one of the biggest horror filmmakers of the 2010s, was hired to direct Dead Spaceits E3 trailer.
The trailer does a good job of scaring viewers without revealing too much when it comes to the monsters, which is exactly what Wan does so well with films like Sneak. In accordance DestructoidWan said he was “blown away by the cinematic imagery and philosophy behind it Dead Space history.”
Steven Spielberg – The Medal Of Honor series
Spielberg didn’t just lend a helping hand to the epic video game franchise Medal of Honor; he created it and developed the story for the first three games all by himself. Spielberg has created huge movie franchises that have grossed billions of dollars, and it’s no different when it comes to Medal of Honor.
There have been 17 games in the series, all of which were big hits. But the franchise has been surprisingly quiet in recent years. The games even have as much production value as Spielberg’s films too, as the series features music from famed composer Michael Giacchino, who recently began directing himself with Werewolf at night.
