The years-in-the-making Minecraft movie from Warner Bros. might be one step closer to becoming a reality, as Jason Momoa, who you might know as Aquaman, is in “final negotiations” to star, according to Substack publication The Ankler, The Hollywood Reporter, and Variety. However, it still seems the movie might be a long way from actually hitting theaters, though, as neither THR or Variety provided a projected release date. Warner Bros. didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.
The Minecraft movie has hit a few blocks (buh-dum tish) over the past several years. The movie was first announced in 2014, and months later, Night at the Museum and Free Guy director Shawn Levy was reportedly set to direct. But in 2015, Rob McElhenney, known for his work on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Apple TV Plus’ hit show Mythic Quest, was confirmed as the director, and in 2016, the movie was given a 2019 release date. McElhenney later left the project in 2018, and Warner Bros. delayed the film. At one point, the Minecraft movie was set to release on March 4th, 2022, but it got pushed to make room for The Batman.
Despite the issues, a Minecraft movie still seems like it could be a good bet for Warner Bros. The Minecraft franchise is still very popular, having just surpassed 1 trillion views (yes, with a T) on YouTube in December. And video game movies are having a bit of a moment, with the Uncharted movie (which had its own share of development difficulties) and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 so far proving to be big hits. We’ll have to wait and see if the Minecraft film and the Chris Pratt-led Mario movie will keep up the trend.
Update April 18th, 7:51PM ET: The Ankler also reported on the negotiations.
wazup.