Some of Atari‘s most iconic video games are heading to the big screen. Universal Pictures has secured the rights to develop movie adaptations based on 10 classic arcade franchises, marking a major expansion of the studio’s video game slate
The classic video game franchises getting Hollywood adaptations
According to Deadline, Atari’s partnership with Entertainment 360 will give Universal Pictures the rights to develop films based on 10 classic Atari games. Under the new partnership, the studio has already acquired its first Atari IP for a feature film adaptation. Guymon Casady of Entertainment 360 will produce the film from a screenplay by Matt Reilly and Carl Hampe, who will also serve as producers.
The full slate of properties includes iconic titles like Asteroids, Adventure, Berzerk, Breakout, Centipede, Crystal Castles, Millipede, Missile Command, Pong, and Yars’ Revenge. The studio aims to turn these classic games into “large-scale action-adventure films” based on their setting and concepts.
Atari Chairman and CEO Wade Rosen said the company’s games have remained a part of popular culture for more than 50 years. He also added that Atari is excited to work with Universal Pictures and Entertainment 360 to bring its iconic games and worlds to a new medium.
Producer Guymon Casady said he and Reilly grew up playing Atari 2600 games and have remained fans ever since. “The best Atari games dropped you into a world and let your imagination do the rest. Carl and Matt saw an opportunity to take that same spirit and build an original, large-scale adventure around it. From the moment we read the screenplay, we believed there was a great movie here,” he said.
While the first project has been confirmed, Universal Pictures has not revealed which of Atari’s titles will be adapted first. The announcement is exciting for longtime fans who grew up playing these classic games.
Universal Pictures has yet to reveal more details about the project in the future.
