Ubisoft Motion Pictures is close to announcing a partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment to adapt Assassin's Creed into a major Hollywood production, says Variety. The studio, first announced in May, has been commanding attention from a number of top studios with the property. Sony's bid for the Assassin's Creed film rights reportedly beat out Universal, among others.
While the deal has yet to be finalized, it's expected that Ubisoft's film division would retain a high degree of control over the property, though Variety speculates that the picture could be of a large enough scale that both studios would bankroll the production. Ubisoft confirmed that its brands command “high interest from top Hollywood studios,” though neither company would comment further on just how far planning has come. It's unclear, for instance, whether Ubi's plans for a 3D Creedwould come wrapped into this deal (especially given the diminishing returns shown on 3D pictures since that announcement).
The last big-screen adaptation of an Ubisoft property was 2010's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time with Disney. Sony's own gaming properties also enjoy varying stages of big-screen development, most notably in the form of the company's ongoing efforts to realize an Uncharted movie.
Oct 20, 2011
Source: says Variety
