For decades, we have been given live-action adaptations of video games that underwhelmed. They watered-down game stories, mistranslated characters, and fell short at the box office. There are a few select adaptations that are watchable, but for the most part, they are all horrible. Studios run with big-budgets, thinking that gamers want to see their beloved game this way. This is not always the case. Giving gamers a perfect adaptation is something that filmmaker Jordan Vogt-Roberts (Kong: Skull Island) is considering when making a live-action Metal Gear Solid.
In a recent interview with Gamespot, Vogt-Roberts (who recently directed the live-action Destiny 2 trailer) says that Kong: Skull Island essentially saved the Metal Gear Solid film:
“I really give credit to the people I’m working with at Sony, the executives and the producers. I was able to go to them and say, ‘Let’s stop where we are, because I think we’re heading down a direction that doesn’t fully capture why people love this game. What Kojima’s voice is, why people who have played this game for decades love it, why people who have never played this game will love it.’
‘Let’s really think about whether we’re making the truest, most balls-to-the-wall Metal Gear version of this – the most Kojima version of this. And even if that means we make it for a little bit less money, let’s make the version of this that’s true to what it is, fully committed to what Kojima’s voice is.’
So we’re sort of re-working the script right now, and hopefully we get a script that they are excited about, and then get more serious about making it …There’s a billion ways to do this wrong. Metal Gear is so tonally complex, it would be so easy for a studio to make it generic. Make it G.I. Joe, make it whatever.
It’s like, ‘No, no no. If you’re going to do this, you have to double down. And 100% not be afraid of what Metal Gear is.’ You have to fully commit to it. That’s what’s going to make people fall in love with it.”
With Vogt-Roberts trying to perfectly capture Hideo Kojima’s voice for the film, could Konami stonewall the film project? The game developer and the series creator recently had a falling out. The game is still a few years away from becoming reality. Vogt-Roberts has a busy schedule in the near future.
What do you want from a Metal Gear Solid movie? Let us know in the comments section below.
