Metal Gear Solid Movie Gets a Writer

Despite reported power struggles between Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima and publisher Konami, the long-in-development Metal Gear Solid movie is indeed moving forward.

Hollywood news site Deadline reports that British writer Jay Basu has inked a deal with Sony Pictures to write the upcoming film adaptation of Konami's stealth-action series.

Basu was on the writing team for 2014's Monsters: Dark Continent and 2012's Fast Girls. Deadline also reports that Basu, a "hot British writer," has been tapped by Universal Pictures to help re-launch some of the company's monster movie franchises, including Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Mummy.

As was previously announced, The Kings of Summer director Jordan Vogt-Roberts is on-board to direct the upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie.

There's no word yet on plot or who will play Solid Snake. Kojima said he was previously eyeing X-Men star Hugh Jackman for the role, but it was later decided to cast a unspecified newcomer instead. Kojima himself was at one time working on the Metal Gear Solid movie in a supervisory role, though it's unclear if recent developments have affected that arrangement.

The Metal Gear Solid movie is not the only movie based on a video game in the works. Ubisoft is currently working on a total of six movies, including features based on Assassin's Creed, Splinter Cell, and Watch Dogs. In addition, movies based on Warcraft, The Last of Us, Temple Run, Minecraft, and Angry Birds are on the way. The most recent video game movie was last year's Need for Speed, which starred Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul. The movie did not win over critics, but it was a commercial success.

The next Metal Gear Solid game is the upcoming open-world title Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain, a sequel to March 2014's Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. The game is due out worldwide for consoles on September 1, while the PC edition is coming two weeks later.

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