Ghost Of Tsushima Movie Gets A Worrying Update

Ghost of Tsushima director Chad Stahelski shares some disappointing updates on the movie adaptation of the award-winning PlayStation game. In an interview with Total Film (via ComicBook.com), the director reveals that the film’s progress is taking some time.

The PlayStation game Ghost of Tsushima was announced that it would be adapted into a movie back in March 2021 with John Wick director Chad Stahelski at the helm. It took a year before they got Takashi Doscher to work on the script.

After that, we haven’t heard any progress. Considering this is one of the most popular fresh new properties Sony has released, many thought this would be in development soon.

Stahelski told Total Film magazine:

[Ghost of Tsushima] would be my favorite to do next. Without going into crazy detail, it’s something I’m super interested in. We have a really great script. We have a really good creative team behind it. It’s just about getting all the business end of things locked in. It’s kind of in that little bit of flux where everybody is trying to tighten up the deal to get everything going, and to make sure we do the best with it. It’s a simple thing: getting a great script, and starting to put together a cast. It just takes a lot of moving parts.

In other words, the project is moving forward. It’s just taking time.

The Movie Adaptation Of Ghost Of Tsushima Is Progressing

Sony has been making a lot of commitment to making TV shows and movies for their known PlayStation properties for the past few years. And we are now even seeing the results of it. Many of us are already enjoying HBO Max’s adaptation of The Last of Us.

Not only that, but God of War is being developed over at Amazon Prime. Horizon Zero Dawn is made for Netflix. Peacock’s adaptation of Twisted Metal has already been filmed and is going through post-production. Gran Turismo already has already released its trailer, and the movie is being directed by District 9’s Neill Blomkamp.

Ghost of Tsushima was a surprise hit because it was a fresh new franchise from Sucker Punch Productions. It was a US-developed game, but the game was set in feudal Japan. The game is set in 1274 on the Japanese island of Tsushima, where the Mongols invaded the island.

It was such a departure from their known franchise, Infamous. Even though the game was made as an open-world game like Infamous, it was heavily inspired by classic samurai movies like Akira Kurosawa. The game was released on the PlayStation 4 in July 2020 and on the PlayStation 5 in August 2021.

It became a commercial success. The game has been nominated for several awards and won a few of them. It even won awards from Japan Game Awards 2021 for Grand Prize and Award for Excellence. It’s the first for a US-based game development company (or any game developed outside Japan) to win such an award. Not only that, but the game’s directors, Nate Fox and Jason Connell, were even named as tourism ambassadors of Tsushima Island.

Ghost Of Tsushima Director Wants To Be Faithful To The Game and To Japan

Ghost Of Tsushima Movie Gets A Worrying Update

Credit: Sony Entertainment

The game Ghost of Tsushima was done with love and care even though it was made in the US. Would they be able to do the same with the movie? With John Wick director Chad Stahelski at the helm, he really wants to give it that proper aesthetic, just as the game did. It was reported that the director wants to film it in full Japanese. Stahelski said in an interview with Collider back in August 2022:

So, I think if we did this right, it would be visually stunning. It’s character driven. It’s got an opportunity for great action, great looks. And honestly, we’d try to do it, all in character. Meaning, it’s a Japanese thing about the Mongols invading Tsushima island. A complete Japanese cast, in Japanese. Sony is so on board with backing us on that. I’ve been going to Japan since I was 16. I have a love of the country, love of the people, love of the language.

I would think that making the film as good as they can is more important than rushing the project. Stahelski wants to be authentic as much as possible, then let’s give him time.

Currently, Chad Stahelski is working on the post-production of John Wick: Chapter 4, and he’s also producing the spin-off film Ballerina starring Ana de Armas.

What do you think of the progress of the Ghost of Tsushima? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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