Amazon sign first-look deal with the company planning Disco Elysium and Life Is Strange shows
This doesn't mean they're making these shows, mind
Amazon Studios are considering making Prime shows and films based on video games, signing a first-look deal with the production company currently planning adaptations of games including Disco Elysium and Life Is Strange. This will give Amazon the first opportunity to snap up anything DJ2 Entertainment might be making, if they want to. This is not, however, an announcement that Amazon will make these specific shows. These shows still might never get made, by anyone. But maybe it's enough of a step forwards for you to start daydreaming about what such shows could be?
DJ2 Entertainment have scooped up the adaptation rights to a load of games in recent years. Their current plans include a live-action Disco Elysium series, a live-action Life Is Strange series, a Sleeping Dogs feature film, an Echo live-action movie, a live-action Ruiner series, a Little Nightmares series, and something based on It Takes Two. In terms of ideas they've actually realised, DJ2 were producers on the Skulls Of The Shogun cartoon, two of their fellas co-produced the unexpectedly fun Sonic The Hedgehog movie (which I've still not forgiven for changing Sonic's face), and DJ12 are executive producers on the Tomb Raider animated series headed to Netflix.
Amazon want in on this. Deadline reported yesterday that Amazon Studios have signed a first-look deal with DJ2. This means Amazon will get the opportunity to check out DJ2's projects before anyone else and pick them up if they want 'em, then DJ2 will be able to shop them around elsewhere if not.
What this does not mean is that Amazon Prime are making a live-action Disco Elysium. They might! But I wouldn't take anything for certain. Shows get picked up, kicked around, put down, picked back up, and binned all the time. A first-look deal is a long way from a finished product. Still, do tell me, reader dear: in your wildest dreams, what would such a show be?
Amazon are well into adaptations, mind, and do have an interest in games. In November 2021, Deadline reported that Amazon were close to a deal for a Mass Effect show (Imogen will tell you Liara should be the main character).
I'm not interested in adaptations even of games I like, but I am hopeful these next few years might at least be better than Uwe Boll's heyday. Maybe we'll get really, really lucky and return to the golden days of video game adaptations, the 1990s. They followed a simple formula: take a video game's name, slap it on a dystopian action-comedy movie, and you're done. Perfect. Nobody's made a better video game adaptation than Super Mario or Double Dragon.
