It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphiastar and co-creatorRob McElhenneyhas signed on to direct Warner Bros.‘Minecraftvideo game adaptation. The filmmaker replacesShawn Levy, who backed out of directingMinecraftback in December, with screenwritersKieran MulroneyandMichele Mulroneyalso parting ways with the project. It isn’t known ifRob McElhenneywill also take a crack at the script, or if the studio is seeking new writers. Here’s whatVu Bui, CEO of Minecraft publisher Mojang, had to say in a statement.
“Some of you may have seen this guy hanging around MINECON in London a couple weeks ago. He’sRob McElhenney, and he’s going to be directing the upcomingMinecraftmovie.”
Back in October,Rob McElhenneyset up a project entitledFigmentat Warner Bros., which was slated to be his directorial debut. Since it isn’t known when eitherFigmentorMinecraftwill move forward first, it remains unclear which of these projects will hit theaters first. Aside from these two movies, he has directed three episodes ofIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and the pilot episode for an FX series entitledPariah, starring Bill Burr.
Warner Bros. acquired the rights to this popularvideo gameback in February, withRoy Leeproducing through his Vertigo Entertainment company alongside Jill Messick.Shawn Levyhad been set to direct for just a few months before backing out, since the filmmaker’s ideas didn’t match up with what Mojang was looking for. Warner Bros. hasn’t issued a release date forMinecraftquite yet, so we’re not quite sure when production may begin at this time, or when casting may start.
Minecraftwas created in 2009, and is currently one of the most popular “open world” games, with over 100 million registered users for the online game atMinecraft.net. The XBox 360 version has also sold over 10 million units. The game allows users to use bricks to build massive walls to protect them from the evil creatures in a realm known as The Nether. Since there isn’t exactly a narrative story that unfolds in the game, we’ll have to wait and see how they develop this into a feature film.
Rob McElhenneyhimself responded to the news on his ownTwitterpage, stating he wants to do somethign “strange and wonderful” with the video game adaptation. Do you thinkRob McElhenneyhas what it takes to bring theMinecraftworld to life on the big screen? Let us know what you think, and stay tuned for more details onMinecraft.
