Nearly two years since word last came in that Oscar nominees Jake Gyllenhaal (Spider-Man: Far From Home) and Jessica Chastain (Dark Phoenix) had signed on to star, Netflix’s film adaptation of Ubisoft’s The Division is gaining new ground as Skyscraper helmer Rawson Marshall Thurber has signed on to direct, according to Deadline.
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Rafe Judkins (Wheel of Time) is adapting the screenplay based on the best-selling video game and David Leitch (Deadpool 2, Atomic Blonde, Hobbs & Shaw) was originally set to direct, but due to a scheduling conflict with his currently-filming ensemble thriller Bullet Train, he was forced to step down from the director’s chair though will remain on as producer for the project. The film also marks the second project Thurber has set at Netflix, having finally wrapped production on the Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds-led blockbuster Red Notice in November and the streaming platform having picked up the heist thriller pitch Kingdom Come from him and Machete Kills’ Kyle Ward.
Click here to purchase the first and second installments in Ubisoft’s video game franchise!
In the near future, a pandemic virus is spread via paper money on Black Friday, decimating the city of New York and killing millions. By Christmas, what’s left of society has descended into chaos. A group of civilians, trained to operate in catastrophic times, are activated in an attempt to save who and what remains.
Gyllenhaal and Riva Marker of Nine Stories along with Jessica Chastain and Kelly Carmichael of Freckle Films, and David Leitch and Kelly McCormick of 8711 are also producing the film with Ubisoft Motion Pictures.
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At launch, The Division, an online-only action role-playing third-person shooter, quickly became the fastest-selling new IP in video game history and currently has more than 20 million players. The Division 2 launched in March 2019 to critical acclaim and continues to provide players with new content on an ongoing basis.
(Photo Credit: Greg Doherty/Getty Images)
