Any time a movie adaptation of a video game is announced, questions often arise about whether it will retell the same stories we’ve already experienced or offer something new. Similar questions came up when an A24-produced adaptation of Death Stranding was announced. During the recent 10th Anniversary livestream from earlier this week, Hideo Kojima, along with movie director Michael Sarnoski, confirmed that the Death Stranding movie will be telling its own original story rather than retelling the stories we’ve experienced in the games.
Sarnoski described the story of the movie as one that would capture the soul and themes of the game while still telling a completely new story that we haven’t seen before. Through this story, he noted that we would get to explore new characters as well.
“I think, with this project, we really want to capture the soul of the game, capture the themes of the game, but tell a story you haven’t seen in that world and explore characters you haven’t seen before, and find all of that scope and all of those incredible real locations, but also find all of those nuanced characters and just do justice to this on a macro and micro scale,” said Sarnoski (via IGN).
He also spoke about trying to find the right balance of telling a completely original story while still taking place in the same universe that was already depicted in the games. Through the movie, Sarnoski wants to make the world of Death Stranding more accessible to those who might not have already played the games, while also giving something new to fans of the series as well.
“We’re trying to find another story that you’ve never seen in this same universe that is both accessible to people that have never played these games before but will also give something to people that know the games really well,” Sarnoski explained. “I think finding that balance and finding a way to tell a human story in this world that captures everything that we love about it, as well as being able to stand on its own two feet, is really the goal.”
Kojima had previously spoken about the Death Stranding movie earlier this year, and noted that Sarnoski was a good choice for directing the adaptation, thanks to being smart and having good taste. During the same episode of his Koji10 radio show, he also said that it is going to be “an unbelievable and strange film”.
The movie adaptation of Death Stranding was first announced all the way back in 2022. It’s co-produced by Kojima along with Barbarian executive producer Alex Lebovici. Along with the two, Kojima Productions US and Allan Ungar serve as executive producers, with funding coming from Hammerstone Studios.
The involvement of A24 was announced back in 2023. The company is known for having produced critically-acclaimed movies across a wide variety of genres with films like Everything Everywhere All at Once, Uncut Gems, Hereditary and Midsommar.
As you wait for the release of the Death Stranding movie, check out our review of Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, which is available on PS5.
