Variety reports that Atari is preparing a movie adaptation of it’s 80’s arcade/console game Missile Command for 20th Century Fox. Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama (the due behind Dracula Year Zero and the reboot of Flash Gordon) will be adapting the project for producers Peter Chernin and Dylan Clark (of Chernin Productions, who are herding Rise of the Apes to the screen).
The 2010’s are shaping up to be a big decade for 1980’s video game adaptations, (which is fitting, since the 1990’s and the Aughts were decades heavy on 1980’s remakes, reboots, prequels and all-around franchise re-starters). Atari has Asteroids set up at Universal and Rollercoaster Tycoon at Sony.
The Missile Command project is just the latest in a series of 1980’s video game/toy-based films in development – Universal’s Battleship is shooting in Hawaii, Sony has He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, while Sony is working on – wait for it – View-Master.
Missile Command‘s premise is at least as strong a base for a film as Battleship‘s: the player fire streaking missiles at incoming bombs to defend their city, while avoiding civilian aircraft (and little orb-things which presumably are satellites). I can imagine a Cold War-era invasion-themed action flick. Seriously, it could work.
No word yet on Hungry-Hungry Hippos, Operation or Slinky. While we breathlessly await the news of which beloved toy or cartoon or video game from our childhood Hollywood will slash and burn next, play Missile Command on Atari’s website.
Are you interested in seeing Missile Command become a movie? What 1980’s toy would you like to see adapted for the screen? (Or is that a stupid question?)