Howdy do, everyone, it's Papa Vinyard here.
We've known for over a year that Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions was going to be doing an adaptation of Patrick Jean's classic video game-loving short, PIXELS. Yesterday, The Hollywood Reporter put up the news that Chris Columbus, who last directed the first PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS movie, is in talks to helm the prospectively family-friendly action-comedy. While it's easy to hate on him for his less-than-respected efforts, such as JACKSON, STEPMOM, BICENTENNIAL MAN, RENT, I LOVE YOU, BETH COOPER, and even the first two (maybe weakest) HARRY POTTERs, he still is the guy who directed both HOME ALONEs and MRS. DOUBTFIRE (meaning he can rake in the big bucks), as well as ONLY THE LONELY (which means he has a legit soft spot) and ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING (which means he's probably a totally awesome guy). Plus, he'll always be the dude who wrote GREMLINS and THE GOONIES, so theoretically, this flick could be a fun, uncondescending kids flick that actually has some serious stakes as well as some iconic, classic video game-inspired visuals.
While Sandler is producing (alongside original short director Patrick Jean), and his buddy and oft-collaborator Tim Herlihy is co-writing the script, there hasn't been word, as of yet, as to whether he'll actually star in the movie himself. Seeing as they're snagging Columbus and will probably need a megastar that's in with the kiddies to lock down a sizable enough budget to do this thing justice, I'd say it's a serious possibility. Personally, I'm more concerned with the heavy presence of licensed characters that are featured in the short, and how that'll translate into the final film. While WRECK-IT RALPH had a ton of characters from old-school games, none of them really took center stage, and it's hard to believe that Namco, Nintendo, and the other companies who own these properties will allow them to be central plot elements without some sort of cut-in deal. But I didn't even think the cross-franchise stuff in WRECK-IT RALPH would ever happen, so we'll see what geek-fantasy imagery the powers-that-be can arrange.
-Vincent Zahedi
”Papa Vinyard”
vincentzahedi@gmail.com
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