Variety (via GameFragger.com) brings word that Madame Web and Anyone But You star Sydney Sweeney will lead the planned big screen adaptation of the hit Hazelight Studios and EA video game, Split Fiction.
Deadpool & Wolverine writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are penning the screenplay, with Wicked and G.I. Joe: Retaliation helmer Jon M. Chu set to direct. That's some heavyweight talent, and it's clear this is being viewed as a potential new action franchise for Sweeney.
However, her co-star, who is bound to receive equal billing, has yet to be found. The trade also reveals that it's undecided whether Sweeney will play Zoe or Mio in the movie.
We first learned that a Split Fiction movie was in the works back in March during the Game Developers Conference. Hollywood's interest in the project was piqued when the game was released to overwhelmingly positive reviews and reported sales of more than two million copies in the week after its launch.
Split Fiction will be produced by Mike Goldberg and Dmitri M. Johnson's Story Kitchen (formerly dj2 Entertainment), and Chu’s Electric Somewhere. Sweeney is also set to executive produce.
Story Kitchen has previously produced the Sonic the Hedgehog movies, the Tomb Raider animated series on Netflix, and the upcoming Streets of Rage and It Takes Two movies.
Sweeney is looking to make an impact in the video game adaptation space as news broke earlier this week that she's also producing an Outrun movie for filmmaker Michael Bay. She's not attached to star in that, but has shared her love of gaming by revealing she grew up with a brother who was a big gamer.
The Simpsons: Road Rage and Super Mario Bros. were listed as being among her favourites during Madame Web's press tour.
Are you excited to see Sweeney in Split Fiction? Who do you think should be her co-star? Be sure to let us know your thoughts on that in the comments section below.
Mio and Zoe, contrasting writers, are trapped in their stories by a machine stealing their ideas. They must work together to break free with their memories intact, as they navigate sci-fi and fantasy worlds in an unexpected tale of friendship.
Mio and Zoe don’t get along at first, but they become each other’s only hope. They’ll need to have each other’s backs through bizarre situations and unexpected twists as they traverse stories born from their own wild imaginations.