The launch of BioShock’s beleaguered movie adaptation may now be accompanied by other BioShock projects — including the long-awaited next BioShock game.
Talking to Collider, BioShock movie producer Roy Lee confirmed that while the project’s director Francis Lawrence is still tied up in post-production on The Hunger Games prequel Sunrise on the Reaping, the adaptation of 2K’s blockbuster BioShock remains “next on the docket.”
“We would have gotten it made a few years back, but then other movies got in the way, with one being The Long Walk and the other being The Hunger Games prequel, which comes out this December,” Lee explained, before hinting that the film’s eventual release may prove to be part of a wider BioShock push.
“We’re just waiting for [Lawrence] to finish post-production, because he’s going to be working on it through at least September, and then jump back into it,” Lee continued. “I know that Netflix and Take-Two are very anxious to see the movie come out because they want to have the release coincide with some of the potential new incarnations of the game.”
That latter sentence is particularly exciting, as it teases that publisher Take-Two is keen to see the film debut around the same time as a new BioShock game (or two). Exactly what is meant by “incarnations” remains to be seen, though.
When pressed for timescales, Lee cautiously said: “It’s steadily on the path, but you know how it goes. It’s… so many things could get in the way, but I know that the intent is to hopefully get in production next year.”
Netflix announced plans for a BioShock adaptation back in 2022, though the project has stalled due to budget cuts impacting the scope of the movie and its script. Prior to that, Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski was working on his own adaptation, though that ultimately came to nothing.
In September 2025, producer Roy Lee confirmed the project is still in active development, with director Francis Lawrence on board to direct.
“It’s a tricky adaptation, so there’s lots of things to figure out and to get right,” Lawrence told IGN at the time. “There’s regime changes at Netflix, and so things stall out and get re-energized and stall out and get re-energized, and I think we’re in a pretty good place, honestly.”
As for the long-awaited BioShock 4? After layoffs and a further delay to the project’s release, former Gears of War head and Diablo franchise lead Rod Fergusson will now oversee Cloud Chamber and the project itself, which has been in development for the last decade.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
