Video game adaptations are a tricky beast. Many have tried to turn some of the medium’s most iconic and beloved properties into feature films only to come up short. It happens time and time again and at this point, it seems as if the curse will never be broken. I mean, if the combined talents of Justin Kurzel, Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard couldn’t crack it, is there any hope left?
That’s a question that director Brad Peyton will soon set out to answer, as he’s the man behind the camera for Rampage. Teaming up again with one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars in the form of Dwayne Johnson, the flick – based on the 1980s arcade game of the same name – is currently shooting and earlier this week, the actor took to Instagram to share a healthy dose of plot details – expanding on what we’d already heard.
“I head up an anti poaching unit out of Rwanda. My best friend is a rare albino gorilla named, George. Very bad people infect George, an alligator and a wolf with a serum. All three animals grow at an unprecedented rate. Their size, speed, agility and violent aggression is off the charts. They go on a deadly rampage and want to destroy the world. George not happy. Me not happy. When animals like you, they lick you. When they don’t like you, they kill you. I will hunt down the bad people who did this to my best friend.”
Given that the film is based on an arcade game, we wouldn’t blame you for rolling your eyes at Rampage. After all, thin plots are almost a given when it comes to titles from this era of gaming (especially those found in arcades) and as such, both Johnson and Peyton will have their work cut out for them if they hope to actually flesh out the story and offer up something more than just some mindless action. And while it’s still far too early to say if they’ve succeeded in doing that, there’s definitely a strong cast on board to help.
Malin Akerman, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Joe Manganiello and more will all co-star, lending a huge helping of talent to Rampage. Will it be enough though to turn the adaptation into the first impressive video game movie, though? That remains to be seen, but with the film now in production and expected to be with us next April, we’ll hopefully get to see something from it in the not too distant future. Until then, we’ve got our fingers crossed.