Long before we ever had a Minecraft movie or a sequel, a whole trilogy of movies dedicated to Mortal Kombat or the Nintendo Cinematic Universe (NCU), Sleeping Dogs was one of the most requested video games for movie adaptations. And for a while it seemed like it was going to come true until things finally ground to a halt.
However, fans of the Hong Kong action game got an exciting update earlier this year, when Simu Liu, who is best known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Shang-Chi, revealed that he was in talks with the rights holders to try and bring Sleeping Dogs to the big screen.
Flash forward to today, and Liu has shared on social media that the first draft of a potential adaptation of the 2012 game is finally complete. Liu shared a screenshot of the script alongside his own sleeping dog.
There are still many unknowns when it comes to sleeping dogs
Unfortunately, parts of the script are blurry, including who wrote the script, as well as other important identifying information, especially potentially who would star in it or direct it. Either way, it represents a huge development for an adaptation that many thought was largely DOA.
In a follow-up post, Liu noted that Square Enix is ”absolutely fantastic” in bringing the rights to fruition, while also noting that “it's the studios that don't seem to understand how important this IP is BUT we're going to get them there.”
That last bit will probably serve as the film's biggest hurdle. While we're in the golden age of video game adaptations, with so many titles either receiving movies, animated series, or TV shows, the Sleeping Dogs movie will still require a studio willing to back it, and while we have no idea which studios have pitched the film, it's clear from Liu's own words that finding a taker has been difficult.
Given that there is an actual script, making the adaptation is more than a concept, maybe things will turn around pretty quickly. Here's hope.
- Released
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August 14, 2012
- ESRB
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M for adults 17+ due to blood and gore, intense violence, sexual content, strong language, drug use
- Developer
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United Front Games
- Engine
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Havok
