Jason Momoa in Talks for New Street Fighter Movie
Wrestler Roman Reigns is also expected to take on a role
There's news regarding the new adaptation of "Street Fighter": according to industry magazine Deadline, they are now looking to sign up a really big star for the project: Mr. Aquaman himself – Jason Momoa.
Which role the "Minecraft" actor is supposed to take on is not yet known. However, other actors are already under discussion as well: for instance, "Bullet Train" star Andrew Koji and wrestler Roman Reigns are currently in negotiations. Noah Centineo, who recently starred in the war drama "Warfare", is also being considered for the film. But so far there has been no official statement from studio Legendary.
"Street Fighter" is based on the globally successful video game series of the same name by Capcom, which has been around since 1987. The series is known for spectacular one-on-one fights between international martial arts fighters and many of its games revolved around a global tournament, often hosted by the sinister M. Bison and his criminal organization Shadaloo. A "Street Fighter" film adaptation starring Jean-Claude Van Damme was released in 1994 – and while it has achieved a certain cult status, it's still largely regarded as a flop.
It also remains unclear who will write the script and produce the movie. "Bad Trip" director Kitao Sakurai will be the director of the film. He succeeds "Talk to Me" directors Danny and Michael Philippou, who had joined the project in April 2023, but are no longer involved.
From Pixels to Flops: The Most Unpopular Video Game Adaptations of All Time
Video games offer plenty of material for exciting, visually striking stories – at least in theory. In practice, many film studios have proven just how difficult it is to successfully bring these digital stories to the movies. Numerous attempts have ended in spectacular disaster due to the wrong tone, lousy scripts or a blatant disregard for the source material. Here are some of the most unpopular video game adaptations of all time that fell flat in the eyes of both critics and fans.
Super Mario Bros. (1993)
The first big attempt at a game film adaptation turned into a bizarre disaster. "Super Mario Bros." with Bob Hoskins as Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi transformed the colorful Nintendo adventure into a dark cyberpunk mess. The movie strayed so far from the original that even die-hard fans were stunned. The story was confusing, the designs disturbing and the humor hardly worked. Today, the movie enjoys somewhat of a trash cult status – but from a cinematic perspective, it remains a prime example of how to run a franchise into a brick wall.
Street Fighter (1994)
Capcom's legendary fighting game was filmed in 1994 with Jean-Claude Van Damme as Guile – and failed miserably. Instead of spectacular fights and serious action, the audience was presented with an exaggerated, almost slapstick-like plot with questionable humor. Raul Julia at least gave a charismatic performance as the villain Bison, but even that couldn't save the confusing script and the countless plot holes. The movie flopped with critics and audiences – and years later, there was another attempt that made things even worse.
Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li (2009)
The effort to breathe new life into the character of Chun-Li with a dark origin story was a total failure. The movie was full of clichés, dramaturgically shallow and full of questionable casting decisions. Although stars such as Neal McDonough and Michael Clarke Duncan were involved, the film lacked narrative substance and stylistic direction. For many fans, this movie was the final proof that "Street Fighter" simply wasn't made for the movies – at least not in this manner.
Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)
The first "Mortal Kombat" film from 1995 may not have been a masterpiece, but it did capture the essence of the game. The sequel "Annihilation", however, is a cinematic disaster. Poor effects, confusing story elements and at times unintentionally funny fight scenes turned the movie into a farce. Critics called it an "audiovisual nightmare" and fans were equally disappointed. "Annihilation" is now regarded as one of the worst representatives of the genre.
Alone in the Dark (2005)
Director Uwe Boll is almost synonymous with failed video game adaptations. "Alone in the Dark" with Christian Slater as an occult investigator is one of his "highlights" – in a negative sense. The story is barely comprehensible, the effects cheap and the atmosphere completely trivial. Rotten Tomatoes lists the movie with a score below 1%. An almost remarkable achievement – but unfortunately in the wrong direction.
Doom (2005)
The "Doom" games stand for fast, brutal action and demon hunting – but the movie mostly missed this concept. With Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Karl Urban in the leading roles, it could have been a solid sci-fi action movie. Instead, the audience got a muddled mixture of genres with pseudo-scientific blah-blah and little atmosphere. The infamous first-person scene towards the end was meant to be a homage to the game, but felt rather out of place. Fans criticized the lack of demons, the lame pace and the weak story – a lost opportunity in every respect.
House of the Dead (2003)
More Uwe Boll – more chaos. "House of the Dead" tries to turn a simple arcade shooter into a horror film, but fails miserably. Absurd dialog, stiff actors and the inclusion of actual scenes from the game in the middle of the film caused roaring laughter – but not in a good way. Despite its trashy charm, the movie remains a cinematic embarrassment.
BloodRayne (2005)
A vampire action movie with famous names like Ben Kingsley and Michelle Rodriguez – what could possibly go wrong? With Uwe Boll: pretty much everything. "BloodRayne" is chaotic, poorly directed and a complete dramaturgical failure. There is neither suspense nor atmosphere, the violence seems staged, and the dialog is clumsy if not embarrassing. Despite this, two subsequent movies were made – an irony of film history.
Conclusion: When the Game is Better than the Movie
These movies show how hard it is to adapt the magic of a game into the language of cinema. Many adaptations have suffered from a disregard for their source material, uninspired scripts or simply poor direction. But there is hope: movies like "Detective Pikachu", "Sonic the Hedgehog" or the "Mortal Kombat" reboot from 2021 prove that things can be done differently – if games are properly understood and respected, rather than just being rehashed.
