As they say in Hollywood, this is some explosive bombshell news for gamers and meticulous film followers alike: Split Fiction, the old psychological-thriller favorite, is being transformed into a movie. With stars? Stacked. With the wonderful Sydney Sweeney, who has been drawing incredible raves for her powerful performances in shows like Euphoria and Immaculate? Check. The directorial seat? Jon Chu, famed for his epic films Wicked and Crazy Rich Asians. It is happening.
The kicker? A rather stellar, if not super-duo-ish, screenwriting task: Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick from Deadpool & Wolverine fame. If that doesn’t shout “this movie’s gonna be insane,” then what would? The project is at least somewhat in its early days, but this level of talent begins to make it one of the most hyped video game adaptations in years.
For players who haven’t played yet, Split Fiction is a psychodramaiffic decision maze in which players embody fractured realities while making decisions that greatly impact the story. Kind of Black Mirror meets Inception-with much more existential dread.
Honestly, the movie adaptation will get much more bang per mile in exploring the themes of identity, perception, and the consequences of choice, all of these Sweeney territory with an intense cut and Chu’s grandiose visuals.
Jon Chu is the one to watch. The guy knows how to weld badass spectacle and heartfelt emotional beats like no one else ever could, just look at Crazy Rich Asians and In The Heights. Not to mention, he’s busy with Wicked, so he knows his way around gargantuan world-building endeavors.
All of that mixed in with the wickedly meta charm of Reese and Wernick (there’s no way they’d have nailed the Deadpool phenomenon without that) and we might just have a rare diamond in the world of video game adaptations that actually pays due respect to the source material!
And Sydney Sweeney couldn’t be busier. In Sweeney’s portrayal of an Emmy-nominated complex character in Euphoria and the recent horror flick Immaculate. Split Fiction’s protagonist feels like a natural fit for anyone who struggles with the very fabric of reality, and Sweeney is perfect for that! This will definitely be one serious gig for her if they shift more heavily into the script’s psychological horror elements.
The big question now is, will this movie actually be good? Video game adaptations have had a… let’s say, spotty track record. But with this team? There is real potential. With Chu’s visual flair, Reese and Wernick’s writing, and Sweeney’s acting, we could finally break the curse. Or at least make something that doesn’t make gamers cringe.
There’s currently no release date announced, but keep an ear to the ground for coming news as production gathers steam. A good way to prepare is to replay Split Fiction…or sit and stare into the void while reflecting on your life decisions. Either works.
Buckle up for what promises to be quite the movie-this one might actually not suck. Or no, at the very least, be something we will all rage upon. For if they do deliver, maybe finally we’ll get to see the long-awaited video-game movie.
