Variety reports that indie director Peter Sollett has signed on to direct the upcoming film adaptation of the hit video game franchise Minecraft for Warner Bros. Sollett is best known for helming the 2008 adaptation of the romantic dramedy Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist,
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The adaptation has been in development for five years now after Warner Bros. won the battle for the rights to the video game, with Shawn Levy (Stranger Things) originally attached to direct and Jason Fuchs (Wonder Woman) penning the script, but after the pair exited, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s Rob McElhenney signed on to direct and write the film, but he also exited the project last August, putting the project back into development turnaround. Beautiful Boy‘s Steve Carell has also been rumored to star in the film since 2016, but no official casting has been made.
The Minecraft movie, based on Markus “Notch” Persson’s video game that encourages players to build blocky, immersive worlds. The game hit consoles back in 2009, and became a huge hit before the big-screen adaptation was first announced two years ago. Now, as the production looks for a new director, it’s unlikely to meet its planned release date in May of 2019. Roy Lee and Jill Messick are still attached to produce the film for Vertigo Entertainment.
Aaron and Adam Nee are also attached to write and direct The Masters of the Universe for Sony. Based on the popular Mattel toys and children’s cartoon that tell the adventures of He-Man in his mythical land of Eternia, the film is planning for a December 2019 release date.
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McElhenney, meanwhile, is currently working on an untitled sitcom pilot with collaborator Rob Rossell. The pilot will star Rob Riggle, Kaitlyn Olson, and Leah Remini, and is currently eyeing a midseason premiere for 2019 or beyond.
