The Hollywood Reporter (opens in new tab) says Duke Nukem, probably the most infamously failed musclehead in videogame historical past, is headed to the large display screen. The rights to a Duke Nukem movie challenge have been picked up by Legendary Leisure, based on the report, whereas Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg, the creators of the Cobra Kai tv sequence, are signed as producers.
In some methods, it is a pure match. Duke Nukem was initially created as a simplistic parody of Eighties motion heroes, in any case: He was all motion, ass-kicking, and half-witted one-liners, and the one factor larger than his weapons had been his biceps. The video games moved from 2D platformer to 3D FPS in 1996 with Duke Nukem 3D, a brilliantly good shooter that earned criticism for embracing the stereotypes somewhat too enthusiastically. However regardless of its success, a brand new recreation within the sequence did not come alongside till Duke Nukem Perpetually in 2011, which ejected the parody aspect and went all-in on “Duke is cool”: It was extensively panned, and tanked.
On the floor, that makes a Duke Nukem movie challenge seem to be a dangerous proposition at finest. I like ’80s motion movies, however I admire them with acceptable ranges of consciousness and irony—and truthfully, I do not suppose there’s any macho star from that period who’s even remotely as douchey as Duke. I certain would not need a Duke Nukem motion movie performed straight.
However the involvement of Heald, Hurwitz, and Schlossberg makes me suppose that there is a probability it might work. Cobra Kai (opens in new tab), which airs on Netflix, is a sequel to the Karate Child movies from the ’80s, which can be a horrible concept on its face. But it is critically acclaimed and a industrial hit due to the way in which it subverts these unique movies: Characters are extra developed and complicated, unhealthy guys wrestle to be higher (a few of them, anyway), and thru all of it there is a delicate acknowledgement of the important ridiculousness of the entire thing: Why are Ralph Macchio and William Zabka nonetheless so desperate to beat the shit out of one another 40 years later?
It isn’t laborious to think about an identical strategy being taken with Duke, and I feel it could possibly be very efficient. And it isn’t as if the idea of an anachronistic, not-too-bright “hero” compelled to grapple with the realities of a world that is left him behind is a brand new and contemporary idea: Mike Myers used it to show himself right into a celebrity with the Austin Powers trilogy.
A Gearbox rep confirmed that The Hollywood Reporter report is correct, however didn’t touch upon whether or not it will likely be straight concerned within the challenge. A author and director for the movie haven’t but been signed.
