Death Stranding film announced, and it's "not just a direct translation"
Kojima's filmic aspirations reaches it's zenith.
Announced almost a year ago to the day, the Death Stranding film has been humming along in the background with it now being revealed that developers Kojima Productions and independent entertainment company A24 are collaborating on the movie based on Hideo Kojima’s game.
Hideo Kojima (Metal Gear Solid) has long had ambitions to break out onto the big screen which is inherently obvious to those who have played any of his games – all of which are imbued with a cinematic flair that was and still is groundbreaking in the medium and earned him the BAFTA Fellowship in 2020.
The Death Stranding game starring Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead) as Sam Porter Bridges – a courier delivering supplies to colonies across post-apocalyptic America after the event known as “Death Stranding” which “blurred the lines between life and death, and brought forth nightmarish creatures into a world on the brink of collapse.”
The Death Stranding movie won’t simply be retelling the game’s story like HBO’s The Last of Us did with the original source material. “There are a lot of ‘game adaptation films’ out there, but what we are creating is not just a direct translation of the game.”
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Speaking on A24, Kojima said, “The films they are delivering to the world are high in quality and very innovative.” Relating to his own experiences with them, Kojima went on to say “I have been attracted to their creations and they have even inspired my own work. Their innovative approach to storytelling aligns with what Kojima Productions has been doing for the last 8 years.”
For fans of both Kojma’s and A24’s body of work – there are definite parallels in how both have subverted traditional storytelling.
With the combined efforts of Kojima and Productions and A24, Kojima lays out that “The intention is that our audience will not only be fans of the games, but our film will be for anyone who loves cinema.”
Combined with the original game, the upcoming sequel and the film, Kojima said that he and A24 “are creating a Death Stranding universe that has never been seen before, achievable only through the medium of film” finishing with a coy remark pertaining to the themes of the game by saying “it will be born”.
The Death Stranding movie was originally attached to Barbarian executive producer Alex Lebovici’s production company Hammerstone Studios as reported by Deadline. When the split between the two happened is unclear, but A24 is a very good match for the enigmatic Hideo Kojima.
Death Stranding has been played by over 16 million players and featured Mads Mikkelsen (Hannibal), Léa Seydoux (No Time to Die), Guillermo del Toro (Cabinet of Curiosities) and Margaret Qualley (Maid).
A new game from Hideo Kojima in collaboration with Jordan Peele (Nope, Get Out, Overdose, was recently announced at The Game Awards 2023 featuring its own star-studded cast.
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Authors
Cole Luke is a freelance journalist and video producer who contributes to RadioTimes.com's Gaming section. He also has bylines for Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, Network N and more.
