The Lord of the Rings and The Boys star Karl Urban plays Johnny Cage in the upcoming Street Fighter movie, and now the actor has said he wants to play another John in a video game movie.
Urban told Square Mile that Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption is one of his favorite video games, and he would jump at the chance to play the first game's main character, John Marston, if there were ever an adaptation of the project for film or TV.
"I mean, come on, John Marston! I'd love to play that character," he said.
Urban also shared that the 2010 game is one of Urban's favorites. He said when he was younger he didn't get the chance to become "heavily invested in the gaming culture" because he was an unemployed actor living and "couldn't afford those consoles." Now, he can, but that level of fame and success also meant he was increasingly busy and didn't have much time for gaming.
When he did get a break, however, Urban got into Red Dead Redemption. "I was so busy working on various projects around the world that I was never able to get into [gaming]," he said. "From time to time, when I did get the rare opportunity, Red Dead was certainly one of the games that spoke to me."
Actor Jack Black has said time and again for years that he can't understand why Red Dead Redemption hasn't been adapted for a film or TV show yet because the game is so cinematic. If it were to get an adaptation, Black said he wants to be in it in some capacity.
If Urban gets his wish to play John Marston one day, it wouldn't be his first role in a video game adaptation, as he played Reaper in 2005's poorly received Doom movie.
Rockstar and parent company Take-Two have never made a Red Dead Redemption movie or TV show, and in fact, the only Rockstar property to get made into a movie was Max Payne. Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis starred in the poorly received 2008 film, but it was commissioned prior to Rockstar buying the Max Payne IP from Remedy, which created the first Max Payne game.
Rockstar is especially protective of its IP. The rapper and actor Eminem could have starred in a GTA movie directed by Ridley Scott, but it never came together. Film and TV executives have approached Rockstar owner Take-Two over the years about making a GTA movie, but the company has always said no because it wants to have creative control.
There has never been an official GTA movie, but the BBC produced a film called The Gamechangers in which Daniel Radcliffe played Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser. Rockstar Games sued the BBC over the production.
Beyond Rockstar, Take-Two's 2K division has been more willing to sell movie rights to its franchises, and not always with success. The 2024 Borderlands movie was poorly received and bombed at the box office, but Lionsgate funded the movie, so the damage is more reputational than financial for Take-Two and 2K. The next 2K title to get a movie adaptation is BioShock, which is getting spun into a Netflix movie with The Hunger Games director Francis Lawrence attached.
Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick, a former movie executive, said movies and TV adaptations only represent a "relatively small opportunity" in terms of the money that can be made. He said successful adaptations like The Super Mario Bros. Movie and HBO's The Last of Us were rare examples of video games finding success with TV and film adaptations.
"And to point out two success as notable as they may be, belies the fact that there are many, many failures where money was lost," he said. "So far, we've taken a very selective approach to licensing."
Nothing is ruled out for future adaptations, though. "We could see licensing in the future when there's a creative imperative and an economic opportunity," Zelnick said.
Source
Urban told Square Mile that Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption is one of his favorite video games, and he would jump at the chance to play the first game's main character, John Marston, if there were ever an adaptation of the project for film or TV.
"I mean, come on, John Marston! I'd love to play that character," he said.
Urban also shared that the 2010 game is one of Urban's favorites. He said when he was younger he didn't get the chance to become "heavily invested in the gaming culture" because he was an unemployed actor living and "couldn't afford those consoles." Now, he can, but that level of fame and success also meant he was increasingly busy and didn't have much time for gaming.
When he did get a break, however, Urban got into Red Dead Redemption. "I was so busy working on various projects around the world that I was never able to get into [gaming]," he said. "From time to time, when I did get the rare opportunity, Red Dead was certainly one of the games that spoke to me."
Actor Jack Black has said time and again for years that he can't understand why Red Dead Redemption hasn't been adapted for a film or TV show yet because the game is so cinematic. If it were to get an adaptation, Black said he wants to be in it in some capacity.
If Urban gets his wish to play John Marston one day, it wouldn't be his first role in a video game adaptation, as he played Reaper in 2005's poorly received Doom movie.
What's happened so far
Rockstar and parent company Take-Two have never made a Red Dead Redemption movie or TV show, and in fact, the only Rockstar property to get made into a movie was Max Payne. Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis starred in the poorly received 2008 film, but it was commissioned prior to Rockstar buying the Max Payne IP from Remedy, which created the first Max Payne game.
Rockstar is especially protective of its IP. The rapper and actor Eminem could have starred in a GTA movie directed by Ridley Scott, but it never came together. Film and TV executives have approached Rockstar owner Take-Two over the years about making a GTA movie, but the company has always said no because it wants to have creative control.
There has never been an official GTA movie, but the BBC produced a film called The Gamechangers in which Daniel Radcliffe played Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser. Rockstar Games sued the BBC over the production.
Take-Two doesn't make many movies
Beyond Rockstar, Take-Two's 2K division has been more willing to sell movie rights to its franchises, and not always with success. The 2024 Borderlands movie was poorly received and bombed at the box office, but Lionsgate funded the movie, so the damage is more reputational than financial for Take-Two and 2K. The next 2K title to get a movie adaptation is BioShock, which is getting spun into a Netflix movie with The Hunger Games director Francis Lawrence attached.
Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick, a former movie executive, said movies and TV adaptations only represent a "relatively small opportunity" in terms of the money that can be made. He said successful adaptations like The Super Mario Bros. Movie and HBO's The Last of Us were rare examples of video games finding success with TV and film adaptations.
"And to point out two success as notable as they may be, belies the fact that there are many, many failures where money was lost," he said. "So far, we've taken a very selective approach to licensing."
Nothing is ruled out for future adaptations, though. "We could see licensing in the future when there's a creative imperative and an economic opportunity," Zelnick said.
Source