Microsoft's alien-invasion-themed "Gears of War" is already one of the hottest video games to hit the market in recent years, but could it be one of the hottest films to hit theaters too? With the release of the game's sequel days away and "Underworld" director Len Wiseman now behind the camera, MTV spoke to "Gears of War" screenwriter Chris Morgan about the status of the film and the big questions that have gamers buzzing.
While Morgan said the final script for the film has yet to be approved by developer Epic Games, he did say that the rumors that the "Gears of War" film will be a prequel of sorts to the story that unfolds in the game are untrue — or, rather, not entirely true.
"There are elements to it that can be considered a prequel," Morgan teased, "but it's not a prequel as far as I'm concerned."
What he could confirm, however, is the live-action debut of some of the game's most familiar faces — namely, the game's main character, Marcus Fenix, and fellow Delta Force soldier Dominic Santiago. Better yet, Morgan hinted that the current script would bring "Emergence Day," the initial invasion by alien baddies known as the Locust Horde, to the big screen.
"It would be a crying shame not to deal with Marcus and Dom," Morgan told MTV News. "I would not be interested in the movie if we weren't dealing with them. I want to see those guys. I want to see 'Emergence Day.' I want to see this stuff happen."
Exactly how that will happen will involve a delicate mix of computer-generated effects and live-action drama, Morgan said. The writer compared his template for scripting "Gears of War" to the mix of creature effects and live interaction in James Cameron's "Aliens." Bringing that concept to the screen, though, will be Wiseman's job.
The director's plan for "Gears of War" is to stay away from an "all-green-screen, all-CGI movie," Morgan said, only using the computer effects for "the big stuff" and certain scenes featuring the Locust.
"In [Wiseman's] mind, he wants to make it as realistic as possible," Morgan said, "and to blur those lines where your mind says, 'Oh, it's a big CGI film.' "
Morgan confirmed that some of the game's most recognizable creatures would make an appearance in the film (read more about the bad guys who will appear in the "Gears of War" movie, including the terrifying Berserker, on the MTV Movies Blog). He also told us that the game's humor-under-fire vibe would also find its way into the film — in some fashion, at least. An avid gamer, he confessed that even though he wasn't "a comedy guy," the humor of "Gears of War" comes naturally once you spend as much time as he has with the characters in both the script and the game.
"I can't write a joke to save my life, but I can, at the right moment, tap into that human thing that comes in when you're in a foxhole and things are raining down," Morgan said. "I think you will definitely have those fun moments, those fun lines and moments between the two. But by and large, I think it will be gritty and real.
"I want to write and play it as though it happened today," he added. "Look outside at your city and imagine that the Locust started rising — that's how I want it to feel."
‘Twilight’ Sneak Peek To Premiere At International Rome Film Festival
Madonna’s Striptease Tribute to Britney Spears
(E! Online)
Opry asks Morgan to become its newest member
(AP)
