While some may wonder why, I have feeling even more are wondering what the hell took so long…
Variety has reported that Sony Screen Gems, in an attempt to mobilize their newest genre franchise, is looking to bring Capcom’s DEVIL MAY CRY videogame(s) to the silver screen. You surprised?
Word is Kyle Ward has been tapped to ink the script, a hire he no doubt achieved after adapting KANE & LYNCH for F. Gary Gray (due in 2013). Ward also has written a hit-man thriller called FIASCO HEIGHTS, which Samuel Bayer is directing.
Anyway, as you might know, DEVIL MAY CRY was originally conceived as the third entry in the mega-popular RESIDENT EVIL franchise, which has gone on to pan all kinds of big-screen gold. Since production design didn’t compute with the world of R.E., Capcom developed DEVIL MAY CRY as its own series. It’s since gone on to sell more than 10 million copies.
In case you’re no gamer (like myself), here’s a Wiki crunch for the game:
DEVIL MAY CRY is a series of five hack and slash video games set in the modern day. The series was developed by Capcom and created by Hideki Kamiya. Originally intended to be a sequel in Capcom’s Resident Evil series, Devil May Cry was such a radical departure from the series’ style that it was developed into a new property entirely. The series centers on main character Dante’s goal of avenging his mother’s murder by exterminating demons. The gameplay consists of heavy combat scenes in which the player must attempt to extend long chains of attacks while avoiding damage in order to exhibit stylized combat; this element along with time and amount of items collected and used are taken under consideration when grading the player’s performance.
Again, it sounds so utterly perfect for a film, it’s kind of a shock the property hasn’t been adapted prior. It’s even more of a shock when you consider how intent studios are on making big, spectacle driven films resemble a f*ckin’ videogame (look at BATTLE: LOS ANGELES as one imminent example).
Still, it’s about us, the masses. Are we down to see a DEVIL MAY CRY flick, or franchise of flicks? Will it, like the games, distinguish itself from RESIDENT EVIL and its many sequels? How do you feel about such a prospect?