After spending over a decade in development hell, the Just Cause movie is finally taking some major steps forward. Blue Beetle director Angel Manuel Soto has signed on to helm the adaptation of Square Enix and Avalanche Studios’ hit video game franchise.
Via The Hollywood Reporter, the Just Cause movie has also picked up a new studio. Universal Pictures will now produce the film, after the rights lapsed from Constantin Film. The first Just Cause game was released in 2006, and the first stories about a film adaptation followed three years later. In 2019, John Wick creator Derek Kolstad joined the project as a screenwriter before ultimately parting from the film.
The Just Cause games put players in the role of Rico Rodriguez, a operative who specializes in bringing down hostile regimes. The most recent game in the series, Just Cause 4, was released in 2018.
Kelly McCormick and David Leitch, who produced The Fall Guy and Nobody with Universal, are attached to Just Cause as producers through their company, 87North. Story Kitchen’s Dmitri M. Johnson, Mike Goldberg, and Timothy I. Stevenson will also produce the film.
Soto is currently preparing to film The Wrecking Crew for Amazon MGM Studios, which will feature Jason Momoa and Dave Bautista in the leading roles. Additionally, Soto is co-writing a Transformers spin-off for Paramount that he may also end up directing.