When 20th Century Fox bought the film rights to well-known trading card game Magic: The Gathering, it came amidst news of Warner Bros. developing a Dungeons & Dragons and Universal adapting World of Warcraft. Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past) is already signed on to produce the first film, which he hopes will launch a franchise on the same level as The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter.
Now Magic: The Gathering has a screenwriter with some experience in the fantasy genre who will help to craft a story for the film adaptation of the beloved Hasbro game.
Deadline is reporting that Game of Thrones producer, story editor, and writer, Bryan Cogman is set to pen the script for Magic: The Gathering. Though Cogman is only credited with writing five episodes of Game of Thrones, they are some of the strongest in the series, including the recent “The Laws of Gods and Men,” which contained a critically-acclaimed speech from Tyrion Lannister.
Looking at the experience of those so far involved with Magic: The Gathering (Cogman and Kinberg) may indicate the type of franchise Fox intends to build out of the game. With backgrounds in fantasy and science fiction, respectively, in addition to a shared knack for telling big budget stories – whether on the big or small screen – Cogman and Kinberg certainly have complementary skill sets for a fantasy franchise.
Although we’ll be able to tell more about the Magic: The Gathering film once a director is announced and script or plot details are released, Kinberg has given himself and Cogman a difficult task already by comparing the upcoming franchise to the likes of Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. It’s hard to predict at this point whether they’re able to complete the undertaking, though their resumes may offer some hope.
With the exception of the aforementioned Harry Potter and LOTR, fantasy films have often struggled in appealing to a wider audience. But with Magic: The Gathering, World of Warcraft, and Dungeons & Dragons all set to be released in the coming years, perhaps these films will finally find their niche among the superhero and sci-fi franchises.
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Screen Rant will keep you posted on development for Magic: The Gathering as more information is made available.
