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By Matt Patches May 25, 2010 |
THR has reported that Legendary Pictures, the company behind mega-tentpoles like The Dark Knight, 300, Superman Returns, Clash of the Titans and the upcoming World of Warcraft adaptation have scooped up the rights to Mass Effect and hired writer Mark Protosevich to pen the script.
But what we want to know is - how the hell are they going to do it?! Mass Effect is a massive property and we have some half-way reasonable concerns.
While the lead character, Commander Shepard, has a default look, a highlight of the Mass Effect series is the player's ability to pick and choose their character's sex, appearance and backstory. Is Shepard a grizzled fathead from Earth with an affinity for sniping or a slender female spacer with biotic energy powers?
Will writer Mark Protosevich (Thor, I Am Legend) be able to build-a-character? Probably not. Expect Hollywood to drop this defining feature in favor of a "default" (I heard Matthew Fox is available...).
Can Mass Effect's main plotline be whittled down to a swift two hour stand alone movie without feeling forced?
The story revolves around Shepherd and the crew of his ship, the Normandy, fighting off the Geth (a race of synthetic aliens). And the rogue Turian, Saren Arterius. And a mysterious race called "The Reapers".
We haven't even started with the sub-plots.
The inherent problem with adapting an RPG? Too much story. The best film franchises don't rely on three films to tell a story. Mass Effect will have to figure out a way to tell a compact, succinct film, without relying on future installments to gel it together. How is anyone's guess.
