Some game adaptations take years to get off the ground. Others just quietly drift in development limbo until everyone more or less assumes they are gone. The frustrating part with Hitman is that the property never stopped feeling adaptable. The games already come with a built-in cinematic hook — a cold, precise assassin, globe-trotting intrigue, disguises, elaborate kills, and a lead character who feels like he should have had a definitive screen version by now. Instead, the latest attempt is over before it ever really began.
Speaking with The Direct, Derek Kolstad confirmed that Hulu’s long-in-development Hitman TV series is effectively finished. “It’s dead in the water,” Kolstad said, adding later:
“I love that thing, because I love that game and I love that character. But the problem is, I can write a screenplay, but no one’s going to go out and buy the screenplay. You’ve got to make the movie, you’ve got to make the show. But nothing’s happening with that man, sadly.”
That is a pretty definitive update for a project that has been hanging around since November 2017, when Hulu and Fox 21 Television Studios first announced plans to develop a Hitman series with Kolstad attached to write the pilot and executive produce. At the time, Deadline reported that the adaptation was envisioned as a potential flagship action property for Hulu, but sadly, nothing more came of it.
What ‘Hitman’ Movies Have Been Made?
The Hitman games, developed by IO Interactive, first debuted in 2000 and have since become one of gaming’s most iconic action franchises. The series centers on Agent 47, a genetically engineered assassin whose missions combine high-level espionage with immense creativity and replayability. 47’s ability to take on different disguises, allowing the player countless ways to achieve their goals, has made the franchise one of the most popular in gaming history.
What makes the cancellation sting more is that Hitman has never really gotten a screen adaptation that fans broadly embraced. The 2007 film, starring Timothy Olyphant, currently sits at 16% on Rotten Tomatoes, while Hitman: Agent 47, which saw Rupert Friend take on the mantle, from 2015 holds just 8%. Do we need to say any more? No wonder people have been desperate for a proper adaptation.
Sadly, unlike Agent 47, this adaptation has missed an easy shot.
via Collider