First video game developer Techland premiered the amazing trailer for its upcoming game Dead Island, then reports claimed Mummy producer Sean Daniel had purchased the movie rights only two days later. The LA Times spoke to Malte Wagener, the head of global business development for Koch Media, who is publishing Dead Island through its Deep Silver label, and were told that the movie rights were not sold just yet.
There are a lot of different stories out there but the bottom line is that neither Union nor Sean Daniel has ever talked to Koch Media. Richard [Leibowitz, of Union] and [game developer] Techland agree there was never any rights. There was some misrepresentation on Techland's part about what rights they have and what they can organize, but Richard confirmed in an e-mail that these were just talks and he doesn't have the rights. [Leibowitz declined comment.] To be honest, I'm surprised that someone of Richard's caliber would even go out there and say this, if he did say it.
We've had a lot of inquiries, not only from Union but from other major players for film adaptation. The talks are very early and there's no deal whatsoever. Right now I'd say it boils down to three or four opportunities. Some are studios, not just bonders [financiers] like Union. We'd rather go with a big studio that can bring the creative side.
While it sounds like selling the movie rights for Dead Island is just a matter of time, since Wagener says that "a couple of big-name directors" have approached them about a movie adaptation.
One of the top directors in Hollywood sent a studio his link to the trailer and said he was interested in this, and the studio contacted us. There are different opinions of course in how to do this. The first is that you find a producer and then he brings in a creative team. The other is to find a director first and he'll bring people along. My feeling is we should find a director first.
Wagnener says the plan is to make a movie that isn't the same as the game, which is kinda funny since the game isn't even released yet.
If we got involved with a movie we'd take a very different approach. We're really not going to make the game the foundation of the movie. We can't just sit down and expand it. But one of the key reasons why I go to the theater is to be immersed in the atmosphere and the setting of a different world that's still believable, and I think that's what we have with the game. You have an emotional attachment. Dead Island has that kind of story and that kind of presentation and I think viewers would want to bond with that world and enter it.
Hard to argue with that, considering the sensation the trailer has become, with more than 3 million views on YouTube alone.
