Yesterday evening I was a bit irked when I heard that producer Sean Daniel was purchasing the movie rights to the videogame Dead Island after a trailer promoting the game went viral. I saw it as a cheap ploy to create a brand, contributing to the very thing that is killing modern Hollywood. Fortunately, the story wasn't true.
Dead Island publisher Deep Silver has sent out a press release saying that neither Daniel nor anyone else has purchased film or licensing rights for the zombie game at this time. That said, however, while no decisions have been made, the company is looking at offers, but is doing so with a stringent eye. Said CEO of Deep Silver's parent company, Koch Media,
"We are looking for quality above all else for a movie based on Dead Island. We want to do it the right way as film realizations of games (or vice versa) usually fail to deliver what the fans were looking for. We will not go down this route with Dead Island. Deep Silver profoundly believes in the quality and value of its Dead Island IP"
I still think that selling the movie rights at this time is absolutely ridiculous. The game itself isn't out until late in the year and from the sound of it, it doesn't seem like it's going to turn the zombie genre upside down (the biggest hook is that you battle zombies using only what can be found at a hotel resort). If they actually go for Memento-style storytelling - the reason why the trailer works so well is because a great deal of it is shot in reverse - then it could be something different, but considering that's not the way the game will be played, something tells me that the developers probably don't want to see that happen. For a refresher, check out the trailer below.
