Two years ago the writer of the “John Wick” franchise, Derek Kolstad, was hired to pen the long in the works film adaptation of Avalanche Studios’ “Just Cause” video game franchise.
The popular games follow Rico Rodriguez (aka. Scorpio), a CIA operative and occasional freelance mercenary who specialises in ‘regime-change’ operations. In each game, you overthrow the despotic dictatorship of an entire nation be they in the Caribbean, Micronesia, the Mediterranean or South America.
The games boast massive open-world sandbox environments where almost everything is destructible and you have a high powered grappling hook, retractable parachute and more. The tone starts out as a 1980s action blockbuster and gets increasingly ridiculous as physics go out the window.
Out doing promotional rounds for “Nobody,” Kolstad spoke with Collider and discussed his approach to the game which he dubs “Indiana Jones by way of [James] Bond”. He says he’s already finished the script, with director Michael Dowse having also completed his pass, and casting announcements should take place in the next couple of weeks:
“To be honest, everything changes in the next two weeks because of certain elements in regards to casting and timing and production and all that kind of stuff. But where we are right now, Dowse did a director’s pass and he’s got it rendered down to what he wants to shoot.
… As soon as you cast, and as soon as you hire, people start picking at those cards and you’re like, ‘Eh, let’s open up a new deck and build it from the ground up.’ And yet, the core is there, and there are elements and structural things that just won’t change because we like them.”
Kolstad is also producing alongside Adrian Askarieh and says Dowse gets the material and understands an approach that should hopefully make it work:
“What I love about it is, a lot of times, when you adapt video game IP, there’s either not enough to adapt, or way too much. And with [Dowse] it was like, ‘dude!’ You watch the trailer for Just Cause 4 and you’re like, ‘I got it. I get it. Let’s go.’ And it’s a joy, man.”
Kolstad said the most important thing is to stay true to the game and its lead character which the narrative very much sticks to following throughout ala “The Mandalorian”.