Lionsgate and Hasbro are teaming up on a Monopoly movie and have tapped Andrew Niccol (“The Truman Show”) to write the screenplay.

Lionsgate and Hasbro Allspark Pictures will produce and Lionsgate will finance the film, which centers on a boy from the game’s modest Baltic Avenue on a quest to make a fortune.

“Hasbro is a partner with incredible global reach, one of the most compelling brand portfolios in the world, and a signature brand in Monopoly that has multigenerational appeal,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group co-president Erik Feig.

“Andrew Niccol is the ultimate world creator responsible for such disparate and imaginative films as ‘The Truman Show,’ ‘Gattaca’ and ‘The Terminal,'” Feig added. “He is an inspired choice to develop this timeless property into a big, crowd-pleasing event film that will appeal to kids, families and anyone who has ever played the Monopoly game.”

The companies noted that Monopoly has been played by more than 1 billion people in 114 countries around the world and has been translated into 47 different languages. The original game was released in 1903.

Lionsgate co-president of production Bobby Cohen and creative executive Kyle Benn will be overseeing production on the Monopoly movie for the studio.

Hasbro’s Allspark is currently in post-production on a live-action version of  “Jem and the Holograms” and “Ouija 2” as a sequel to last year’s low-budget horror film.

Hasbro has been attempting to launch a Monopoly movie since 2009. It was set up with Emmett/Furla in 2013 with Ridley Scott attached as a producer, but did not proceed past the development stage.

The game was originally called “The Landlord’s Game.” Parker Brothers began selling a variation of the original game in 1935, based on streets in Atlantic City, N.J., such as Baltic Avenue, Kentucky Avenue, Park Place and Boardwalk.

Lionsgate has focused on its young adult franchises such as “The Hunger Games” and “Divergent.” The studio is developing a family-friendly franchise in “Power Rangers” with Saban, with a release set for Jan. 13, 2017. 

Source: Variety article  

My Thoughts

How can they make this a kid friendly movie about different corporations consolidating power to become a monopoly. I love the board game but how they can make  this movie work is beyond me .