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Force Unleashed Movie?
Source: The Los Angeles Times' Hero Complex sci-fi and comics blog, designed "for your inner fanboy."
What we heard: Ever since it was first revealed in 2006, gamers have been hearing about what a big deal The Force Unleashed is. At the 2008 Game Developers Conference, LucasArts lead designer Hayden Blackman billed the game as a seventh chapter in the Star Wars film saga, set between the third prequel, Star Wars Episode III - Revenge of the Jedi (2006), and the first film, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
Though reviews of the game haven't been totally positive, most critics agree its story is cinematic in its scope. It casts players as the secret apprentice of Darth Vader, dispatched by the Sith Lord to wipe out the few remaining Jedi, which survived the post-Clone Wars purge. Later events in the game further immerse the player into palace intrigue in the court of the Galactic Emperor Palpatine, himself a Sith Lord.
If such alternately action-packed and sinister events strike you as ready-made for the big screen, you're not alone. Speaking to LAT blogger Geoff Boucher, Blackman talked about his "daydream" of seeing the Force Unleashed turned into a motion picture.
"Oh, that would be incredible," the designer told the blogger. "And it's not impossible. Never say never. George [Lucas] has looked to tell new Star Wars stories through the games and with the entire Star Wars Expanded Universe, and then he has also shown a willingness to let the characters come into the films. Look at Aayla Secura, a creation in the [Dark Horse] comic books who became part of the theatrical films."
For his part, Boucher said a film is also a distinct possibility, opining that "Lucas is clearly pleased with this new entry to the broader Star Wars story, and I would not be surprised for a moment to see it on a theater marquee at a CG-animated project in the next few years, especially with the intensifying Hollywood interest in video games and toys as film properties."
The official story: But just because a Force Unleashed film is plausible, doesn't mean it's in the works just yet. When asked for comment, a LucasArts reps said, "There are no current plans to do a TFU movie, but as Haden says, nothing's impossible."
Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus that anything is underway just yet. However, given the fact The Force Unleashed is now the fastest-selling Star Wars game in LucasArts history--moving 1.5 million units in one week--the likelihood of the Lucas media empire further leveraging it in some form is a near-certainty. Hopefully it won't be in the form of a crass Clone Wars-type cash-in.
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