Video game movies and TV shows have come a long way, with many exciting projects on the horizon promising to adapt many popular franchises. For a long time, Hollywood-made adaptations of video games were deemed cursed, with major flops like 1993’s Super Mario Bros. or underwhelming franchises like the Resident Evil series proving as much. But in recent years, plenty of projects have proven the video game curse is broken, with record-breaking animated movies and award-winning live-action TV shows being adapted from video games.
There are a multitude of upcoming video game movies and TV shows that promise exciting adaptations of existing games, in many cases for the very first time. While classic video games most general audiences are familiar with, like Mario and Sonic, have been the target of many adaptations, the success of projects like Five Nights at Freddy’s or The Last of Us prove that producers are willing to take chances on more and more obscure games. A few upcoming projects in particular stand out as especially exciting.
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The Legend Of Zelda
Nintendo’s second-heaviest hitter
While Mario is and always will be Nintendo’s golden posterboy, The Legend of Zelda is a series from the lovable entertainment giant that is practically synonymous with video games themselves. While Zelda may have had a cartoon of dubious quality in the late 80s, the fabled fantasy series has yet to break into the same level of movie success that Mario had with The Super Mario Bros. Movie. But as of 2023, Nintendo has admitted confirmation that a Zelda movie is in the works.
Unfortunately, details are still pretty scarce, with a nebulous release window for The Legend of Zelda listed as “202X”. Slated to direct is Wes Ball of the Maze Runner series and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes fame, who has demonstrated a great aptitude for the kind of dreamy fantastical worlds The Legend of Zelda is known for. With so many possible directions to go in from the countless different games and Zelda timelines, it’ll be exciting to see where the movie ends up landing.
9
Until Dawn
Is practically a movie already
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Compared to most games, Until Dawn is already pretty close to being a straight-up movie in and of itself. The narrative-driven horror game centers on a group of friends whose lives are threatened in a derelict mountain cabin when masked slashers and supernatural undead threats begin to descend upon them. The actual gameplay elements of Until Dawn are fairly light, with point-and-click exploring, quicktime events, and narrative decision-making taking up the bulk of the action.
In a way, this makes it a smooth choice for a movie adaptation, although filmmakers will have a difficult time parsing down which of the many possible paths the story can go in to take. The movie is to be directed by David F. Sandberg of Lights Out and Annabelle: Creation fame, an experienced horror filmmaker. The cast is already filled with promising young adult actors ready to be picked off one-by-one, scheduled to release on April 25th of 2025.
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Helldivers
Sony and Arrowhead’s breakout modern hit
It’s quite impressive how fast successful video games can expect to get a live-action adaptation these days, and Helldivers 2 is a recent success that certainly deserves it. The universe of Helldivers takes place in a distant science fiction future in which the world has been united under a single fascist government, referring to itself as “Super Earth”. In both games, Super Earth battles all sorts of threats inspired by popular science fiction threats, including the insectoid Terminids, the Terminator-lookalike Automatons, and the Independence Day-esque Illuminate.
Helldivers 2 owes a lot of its success to its inspiration from popular films like Starship Troopers, so making a film out of the franchise is a no-brainer. In fact, the games employ a similar method of obvious satire that could be realized amazingly on film, though details are still scant. Super Earth Helldivers did already appear on-screen recently on an episode of Secret Level, and in the wake of the film’s announcement, their presence looks like something of a successful screen-test.
7
Iron Lung
Markiplier’s magnum opus
Five Nights at Freddy’s proved that even indie horror games can reach great heights of success as blockbuster films. The popular streamer Markiplier was hotly-anticipated to appear in the film as a cameo due to his long history with the series, but was ultimately unable to do so because he was in the midst of filming his own indie horror game movie, Iron Lung. The original game puts players in the shoes of an unnamed convict piloting a submarine, the titular “Iron Lung”, adrift in a sea of blood on some distant moon.
Markiplier himself will be directing, producing and starring in the film, making it something of his magnum opus. Morbidly, the game received an increase in player base after the 2023 implosion of the Titan submersible, further fueling the film’s excitement. Iron Lung doesn’t give much in terms of concrete explanations to its universe or story, so it’ll be fascinating to see how Markiplier manages to stretch a feature-length film out of the experience.
6
Street Fighter
A return to the most iconic fighting game franchise
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As far as subgenres of video games go, films based on fighting games have had a particularly rough time, though 2021’s Mortal Kombat was passingly fun. After an infamous 90s movie starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and a single obscure sequel, it seems as though Street Fighter will get another shot at the title belt of best film to come out of the one-on-one fighter genre. The film is scheduled to be released in 2026, directed by YouTubers Danny and Michael Philippou, who had previously made some impressive Street Fighter fan films.
The latest entry in the franchise, Street Fighter 6, has been a smash hit, bringing the series up to speed by aging up the classic characters while introducing new ones, all stylized in a slick modern hip-hop aesthetic. It’ll be interesting to see how much the upcoming film leans into this new identity and how much it relies on well-worn classic imagery from older games known to millennial audiences, like Street Fighter II Turbo. At least the film can be said to be in good hands judging by the twin directors’ previous work.
5
Return To Silent Hill
Could redeem the beloved horror series
One of the most iconic horror games of all time is Konami’s Silent Hill 2, a moody and atmospheric story of a lone man who arrives at the mysterious titular town after receiving a letter from his supposedly dead wife. Shrouded in fog, Silent Hill soon begins to reveal itself to harbor monsters both familiar and alien, leaving it up to the player to make sense of it all. Two previous Silent Hill films have already been attempted, but neither of them have made much use of the beloved second game’s plot.
A third entry based off of Silent Hill 2, titled Return to Silent Hill, was announced in October of 2022. Even if the previous films weren’t well-received, moving on to the most iconic and beloved entry in the franchise bears some excitement. Returning director Christophe Gans will have a big chance to redeem himself for the last two movies. However, the upcoming film may have a difficult time asserting itself as an adaptation of Silent Hill 2 specifically.
4
Dead By Daylight
Already a mashup of horror movie icons
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Speaking of horror games, Dead by Daylight is another solid video game franchise more than familiar with the horror movie world. The asymmetrical multiplayer game allows one killer to face off against four survivors, who must work together to power exit gates and escape before being sacrificed. Though the game is based off of a roster of original characters, it has slowly been able to stack its roster with some of the most iconic horror movie killers and protagonists ever over time.
Horror movie darling Blumhouse Productions has announced a team-up with James Wan’s Atomic Monster that will partner with Dead by Daylight developers Behaviour Interactive for a feature-length movie. Putting a series famed for being the Super Smash Bros. of horror in the capable hands of a brand with such recognizable hits as M3GAN and The Purge is a match made in heaven. It’ll be fascinating to see if the film sticks to Behaviour’s original cast or expands to include whatever cinema horror legends it can get its hands on.
3
Portal
Stuck in development limbo, but brimming with potential
Admittedly, calling the announced Warner Brothers Portal movie an “upcoming” film may be a bit of a hopeful label. Announced in 2021, the project has had little in the way of updates, originally languishing in development limbo as far back as 2013. But the sheer potential that Portal and Portal 2 could have as films is so electrifying that it’s hard not to still muster up excitement for the fateful film-in-waiting.
Valve’s Portal duology puts players in the shoes of Chell, a mute woman who is subjected to a heinous barrage of tests using a groundbreaking “portal gun” at the behest of the rogue sentient A.I., GLaDOS. The series is known for its sharp sense of humor, engaging puzzle mechanics, and clever story developments, even if Chell herself doesn’t speak the entire time. Although the state of the Portal film remains doubtful, it’s hard to deny that a film based off the critically-acclaimed games would be a joy to see realized.
2
Hunt: Showdown
A unique multiplayer experience with deep lore
Hunt: Showdown might not be a game on many movie-going audiences’ radar, but that’s likely to change the second the first trailer gets dropped for the upcoming TV miniseries. Hunt: Showdown is a horror-Western game that takes place in an alternate-history United States circa 1895, in which some profane magical cataclysm has populated huge swathes of the southern countryside with unspeakable monsters. The game features a player vs. player vs. enemy format in which hunters race to claim the bounties of dangerous beasts from one another.
If as much love and care is put into the Hunt: Showdown series as other live-action video game adaptations like Fallout or The Last of Us, the project has the potential to be one of the greatest TV Westerns ever. The unique aesthetic and creature designs would benefit well from an eagle-eyed art department, and the game has enough lore and worldbuilding to last multiple seasons. Sadly, the rights to the series remain in limbo after the failure of the original streaming platform the show was meant for, leaving the project’s future doubtful.
1
God Of War
Has the makings of the next great video game adaptation
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Speaking of exciting live-action TV adaptations of video games, a series for God of War was initially announced to be in development back in 2022. The series started as a character-action game that put players in control of Kratos, a wrathful Ex-Spartan warrior who seeks revenge on the Gods themselves after murdering his family under their influence. The recent reboot games have taken Kratos to a more story-driven place, giving him a new life amid the Norse pantheon of Gods and seeing him grow as a person.
Considering how successful The Last of Us‘ pairing of an idealistic chid and a grizzled battle-hardened veteran with a dark past was, the same trick could easily be pulled with a God of War show. The series could even alternate between Kratos’ Greek and Norse timelines, putting his previous rage into perspective thoughtfully. Slated for Prime Video, the series was set back by the loss of its creative team in October 2024, but has the potential to outdo any video game movie.