After jumping into the world of comic books and graphic novels with films like 300, Jonah Hex and X-Men: First Class, Michael Fassbender is set to dive headfirst into the videogame arena, and even to a further extent than those films. This summer, not only was it revealed that the Shame and Inglourious Basterds star would be leading an adaptation of the Ubisoft hit game Assassin’s Creed, but he would also be producing what is aiming to be a major tentpole.
We’ve now got an update that things are moving forward, as a press release indicates that Ubisoft has linked up with New Regency (coming off the Fassbender-led and Steve McQueen-directed 12 Years a Slave) to co-finance and produce with distribution coming from 20th Century Fox. Producers plan to have a script, full cast and director all set by next summer which hints at a 2014 or 2015 release at the earliest. Check out a quote from Ubisoft CEO Jean-Julien Baronnet below.
“Ubisoft chose to partner with New Regency because they are a talent- and filmmaker-driven company, with the same independent and creative mindset that we have at Ubisoft Motion Pictures. Bringing aboard New Regency’s renowned production and distribution expertise while maintaining our own creative and financial flexibility ensures that Assassin’s Creed will be a high-quality film that respects the lore and fans of the video game franchise.”
With Fassbender working on a batch of independent projects like Terrence Malick‘s next film and Lynne Ramsay‘s Jane Got a Gun (both with Natalie Portman), his only other blockbuster on the horizon is X-Men: Days of Future Past, so I look forward to seeing what he can also do behind the camera here. If anyone could, perhaps Fassbender will deliver our first genuinely great videogame movie.
Are you looking forward to Fassbender’s Assassin’s Creed?