The ‘biggest question’ is who would play Sam Fisher.
By Edwin Evans-Thirlwell, March 2, 2010
Ubisoft’s future, it tells us, is in media ‘convergence’, in migrating top-selling game franchises to non-gaming platforms. The publisher has made determined inroads on home film and cinema in the past couple of years, opening a dedicated CGI studio in Canada and sinking its fingers deep into James Cameron’s wondrous, 3D-flavoured, Avatar-shaped pie (with mixed results, admittedly).
Small wonder, then, that Splinter Cell: Conviction’s Creative Director Maxime Beland is very receptive to the idea of a Splinter Cell movie.
“I’m very hungry for a Splinter Cell movie,” Beland told us at a recent preview gig. “I think Sam Fisher is a great character, I would love to see him right next to Jason Bourne and right next to James Bond, because I think he fits there. So I would love for a Splinter Cell movie to be made.
“Can Ubisoft make a movie? Can Ubisoft make it 3D, like a real footage and 3D movie Splinter Cell? I think so. I would almost say it’s just a matter of time before we end up doing that.”
Of course, the limelight-hogging Assassin’s Creed series is likely to get the silver screen treatment first. Ubisoft put together a sequence of short, highly glossy internet films to accompany the second game’s appearance. “I think Assassin’s Creed right now is such a great franchise for Ubisoft that it makes sense that we make movies out of that also. But I don’t see why we wouldn’t do it for Splinter Cell.”
When asked who he’d cast as Sam Fisher, Beland was uncertain. “It’s probably the biggest question. The biggest questions are probably ‘who is going to play Sam Fisher?’ and ‘do you keep Michael Ironside for Sam’s voice?’
“There is a big decision there, because Michael Ironside is Sam Fisher.” Only balder and not as easy on the eyes, right?
Watch out for the full interview with Beland and our hands-on report later this month. Conviction gets here in April for PC and 360, and it’s looking super-fabulous in a gravelly, smash-your-head-against-the-toilet-door kind of way.
MovieMiguel.com
