Ubisoft’s extreme sports game Riders Republic is the latest in a long line of video games heading to the silver screen. The publisher announced today that a feature film adaptation of 2021’s Riders Republic is underway, and it already has a directorial duo seated behind the camera.
In a press release, Ubisoft Film & Television annnounced it’s partnering with Gaumont for the adaptation of Riders Republic. Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the Belgian duo who directed Bad Boys for Life and Bad Boys: Ride or Die, are already signed on to direct.
The script adaptation will be penned by Noé Debré, whose credits include Stillwater and The World Is Yours.
Not much has been said about the direction, other than the adaptation is “poised to be an electrifying action movie, delivering non-stop thrills, humor, and spectacular stunts on the snowy slopes of the Alps,” per Ubisoft.
2021’s Riders Republic mixed elements of extreme sports simulation with open-world exploration, akin to Ubisoft’s The Crew games. “Riders Republic is an excellent, arcadey extreme sports sandbox with bonkers multiplayer events, an impressive open world, and unfortunate server issues,” wrote our reviewer in IGN’s 8/10 review of its launch version.
In the years since, Ubisoft has gradually added more to the experience, with Season 14 adding a Park Creator for players to form their own playgrounds. It certainly seems like players have been gradually poking away at Riders Republic over time.
As for a feature film adaptation, it remains to be seen what narrative might be concocted around all the extreme sports action. Hopefully there’s at least some sick tricks and crazy stunts, if nothing else.
Video game adaptations are certainly picking up in earnest, though. From box office successes like the Sonic and Mario movies, to recent attempts like Until Dawn, to upcoming adaptations like Clair Obscur and Death Stranding, everyone seems to be getting in on the video game adaptation trend. So why not Riders Republic?
Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.
