Which video game adaptations were originally slated for the silver screen?
What award-winning family drama was almost a movie about octuplets?
Check out which TV shows were originally planned to be movies.
The gun-slinging bounty hunter from a galaxy far, far away had a tumultuous journey before
finally landing on the Disney streaming service. Shortly after Disney acquired Lucasfilm and, by
extension, the "Star Wars" franchise, the company announced spin-off films telling stories adjacent
to the original "Star Wars" saga. "Boba Fett" was initially supposed to be one of those projects:
originally, Josh Trank, the director of "Chronicle" and the catastrophic box-office
bomb that was 2015's "Fantastic Four," pitched his version of a Boba Fett narrative to Lucasfilm.
The studio was enthusiastic about his ideas and announced his admission to the "Star Wars" family,
with Trank set to direct the Boba Fett standalone production.
After the failure and drama that spun out of "Fantastic Four," Trank quit the project,
understanding that he'd probably be fired if he didn't drop out himself.
Eventually, the project landed in the hands of "Logan" director James Mangold,
but a certain famous fictional smuggler seemingly ruined plans for Boba's big-screen future.
The prequel film "Solo: A Star Wars Story," which chronicled Han Solo's younger days picking fights
with gangsters and the Empire, was considered a financial disappointment upon its release.
Disney's focus shifted toward their new streaming service,
where "The Mandalorian" became a flagship series for the service's debut. Thanks to that show's
success, plans for Boba Fett's own series quickly followed, and the rest is history.
George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" novels are now as well-known as Tolkien's Middle
Earth fantasy thanks to the additional popularity that the HBO series "Game of Thrones" brought to
the books. For years, Martin had been courted by scriptwriters who eagerly wanted to share
their version of Martin's fantasy world in live-action cinema. Like a King's Landing not
fit for the Dragon Queen's world, he scorched these ideas to ash and cinder. According to
Entertainment Weekly in 2011, Martin claimed that his book series was simply unfilmable,
despite visions to the contrary attempting to sell him on the idea. The author stated,
"Even Tolkien took three feature films, and three Tolkien [novels] are as long as one of my books."
Martin also noted that, after giving a feature-film idea some thought, he felt
that his works were simply too mature. After all, sex and violence saturate the entire narrative.
"Be quick about it."
Eventually, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss approached Martin and proposed adapting his
books into a series. Since the show would land on HBO, the mature content was no longer a problem.
Furthermore, Benioff and Weiss could take all the time they needed to build out the
story over several seasons, depending on the show's popularity. After reaching an
accord with Martin on the direction of the series, film ideas were finally put to rest.
The White Wolf, better known as Geralt of Rivia, has long been a mainstay of the fantasy genre.
Andrzej Sapkowski created the fabled Witcher and authored a collection of
stories surrounding his exploits before writing a sprawling saga. The Witcher,
known for his combat prowess, keen senses, and hunting acuity, is capable of slaying the most
dangerous of monsters in the wilds. Geralt is also often embroiled in the warring politics,
evil machinations, and drama of the most prominent characters to populate the land.
Netflix was always a prime destination for the Witcher to receive a proper live-action outing.
Although the character had appeared in a few well-received video games made by Polish game
developer CD Projekt RED, fans were chomping at the bit to see Geralt realized in cinematic glory.
"The Witcher" was originally going to receive a standalone Netflix
film, but creatives behind the scenes convinced the producers that there was far
too much material to cover in just two hours. Convinced that the property deserved more,
they got the green light to move forward with a Netflix original series.
"Mr. Robot" was a massive hit for the USA Network. Centered around a mentally unwell
cybersecurity expert named Elliot, the series deals with hacktivism and political issues of
all kinds. It received high praise from both critics and audiences along the way,
winning three Emmys, two Golden Globes, and a Peabody Award.
"I respect that about you."
However, many likely don't realize that "Mr. Robot" was originally intended to
be an independently produced feature film. In an interview with Forbes,
series creator Sam Esmail discussed his creative journey. Esmail stated,
"When I saw it as a movie, I knew where I was going. I knew the ending."
The problem was that he simply had more material than he knew what to do with. Esmail continued,
"When I got to page 90 and I was still halfway through Act 1,
that's when I decided, 'OK. This can be a television show.'"
The showrunner still tackled the series like a movie production,
treating each episode as if it were a short film. Ultimately,
Esmail still achieved what he set out to do with the narrative he'd originally planned.
Sure, the fiery vigilante of Hell's Kitchen already received a big-screen adaptation
in 2003 with Ben Affleck taking on the role of the blind lawyer Matt Murdock.
However, the Netflix "Daredevil" series was also originally envisioned and pitched as a
film by series creator Drew Goddard. Goddard explained why the film approach ultimately
didn't pan out in an interview with IGN: Marvel nixed the idea, believing that Goddard's approach
was far too dark and violent. Marvel simply wouldn't do an R-rated film.
Furthermore, Daredevil is typically seen as a local hero, interested primarily in cleaning the
streets of his own neighborhood. That wouldn't gel with the large-scale epics of the MCU.
Instead, "Daredevil" landed on Netflix, with Goddard free to produce his far more mature
take on the character. Goddard, who'd previously stated that anything short
of his adult vision would be inadequate, was certainly pleased with this outcome.
Believe it or not, "The Sopranos" was originally destined for theaters.
Imagine seeing James Gandolfini's Tony Soprano on the silver screen:
it would have been a sight to behold. However, this hypothetical film wouldn't
have been the cultural landmark that "The Sopranos" series was across its six seasons.
According to series co-creator David Chase, the show was conceived as a film
and pitched as such from the get-go. However, Chase's manager at the time,
Lloyd Braun, suggested that his idea could actually be a television series.
Chase gave it some thought and began to wrap his mind around the mobster's life as an
ongoing series. The scope of his pitch changed, but only enough to cover Season 1,
ending with Tony confronting his mother over trying to kill him. Chase understood this moment
as the end of their tormented relationship, and the second season had to work with fresh ideas
beyond the scope of Chase's original plan. In the end, of course, Chase produced one of the
best TV dramas in history, which won 21 Emmys and five Golden Globes during its time on the air.
"I'm honored just to be considered."
The winding family drama "This Is Us" likes to toy with viewers' emotions. The story
follows the Pearson clan and their three children, who are depicted at various ages,
but primarily as adults. They experience many of life's greatest joys and heartaches. After all,
the Pearsons and many other supporting characters reflect many facets of American society.
While the series has proved to be one of the most successful dramas in modern television,
it wasn't always meant to depict the same family that we know today.
In an interview with Emmy Magazine, series creator Dan Fogelman revealed some juicy
details regarding the origins of the show. Instead of Randall, Kate, and Kevin as the "Big Three,"
Fogelman originally penned an 80-page film featuring a Pearson family with octuplets.
Ultimately, Fogelman decided that he didn't want to follow a traditional narrative trajectory
with a beginning, middle, and end. He wanted to explore a lasting story that continuously
unfolded in the past, present, and future of a single family. The character-driven
nature of the show has proved successful, engaging audiences and critics alike. Let's
just be thankful that we didn't have to follow the chaotic lives of octuplets.
"Dumb luck."
In 2020, "The Queen's Gambit" took the streaming world by storm with a thrilling period piece
based on the 1983 novel by Walter Tevis. The Netflix miniseries centers around Beth Harmon,
portrayed by Anya Taylor-Joy. As an orphaned youth, she becomes obsessed with and shows
a talent for chess, eventually developing a drug addiction to help her focus on her
game and cope with personal loss. The series chronicles her rise to fame in the chess world.
"The Queen's Gambit" novel had long been examined for a possible feature film adaptation. In fact,
the late actor Heath Ledger, himself something of a chess connoisseur, was planning on making his
directorial debut with an adaptation of the novel before he tragically passed away. The
project was halted upon Ledger's death, and was eventually pitched to Netflix as a miniseries.
Fans of the original Archie Comics likely never suspected that it would eventually be adapted for
the small screen in live-action. The television series on the CW Network, titled "Riverdale,"
features the exploits of the famous Archie Comics teenagers, including Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper,
Jughead Jones, and Veronica Lodge. Positioned as a teen drama, "Riverdale" goes big on its
mystery themes and has enjoyed a lasting legacy on the CW network with its deliciously dark tones.
Of course, Archie almost found himself on the big screen. Warner Bros. sought
an adaptation of the character on film. The creatives behind the TV series originally had
their idea dismissed and were asked to work on Archie's first-ever live-action appearance in
a time-traveling story featuring Louis C.K. of all people as the iconic high schooler.
The studio imagined a Riverdale filled with portals that would open up to other dimensions.
That was just a little too wacky, a bit too much like a live-action "Rick and Morty."
Thankfully, "Riverdale" show creator Robert Aguirre-Sacasa didn't like that idea.
He walked away from the whole ordeal,
only to be contacted later by the studio to commit his original vision to television.
Like the bounty-hunting Boba Fett, Jedi Master extraordinaire Obi-Wan
Kenobi was once set to return to the big screen in his own film.
After "Solo: A Star Wars Story" didn't exactly gain the financial returns Lucasfilm and Disney
were looking for, their approach shifted focus. The streaming service Disney Plus changed the
game for Lucasfilm, giving Ewan McGregor a chance to reprise his role on the streaming platform.
"Hello, there."
In fact, both Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen are set to reprise their prequel
film roles in the "Obi-Wan Kenobi" series. The show offers fans the chance to finally see what
Obi-Wan has been up to for all those lonesome years in the desert wilderness of Tatooine.
While his top goal is to protect Luke Skywalker, it seems that much
more went on behind the scenes than Luke could've ever possibly imagined.
As a live-action production, the popular video game property "Halo" has been through development
hell and back. Aside from smaller productions like "Forward Unto Dawn" and "Nightfall," a true-blue
Halo film with Master Chief positioned as the lead has been in the works as far back as 2005.
Alex Garland, known for "Ex Machina" and "Annihilation," was hired by Microsoft to
write an adaptation of the series for the silver screen. Guillermo del Toro was attached to direct,
but ran for the exit when he decided to head up "Hellboy II: The Golden Army."
The project eventually bounced over to "District 9" creator Neill Blomkamp, but a tug-of-war over
creative control between Fox, Universal, and Microsoft resulted in the project being shelved.
"Halo" once again entered the live-action spotlight with the announcement of a TV
series in 2013 with Steven Spielberg attached as a producer. News emerged that the series was
being developed for Showtime. After going through several producers and directors,
the show was shifted to Paramount Plus, where it made its debut in March 2022.
Now, "Halo" has received the renewed attention it deserves in the live-action
space — although that might be up for debate among longtime fans.
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