Gears Of War creator Cliff Bleszinski has approved of Zack Snyder potentially directing a movie based on the acclaimed video game series.
While at Gamescom 2023 to promote his upcoming film Rebel Moon, Snyder was asked which video game franchises he thinks would make for good films.
“Gears [Of War] has always come up in our sort of circle,” he briefly teased before saying that he has always been interested in the Halo franchise, though he acknowledges that Paramount has already released a series based on the game.
While he did not say much else about Gears Of War, Snyder has been a hot favourite among fans of the video game to helm a potential film.
A Gears Of War film was green-lit at Netflix last year, though any further information on its development has remained scarce at the time of publishing. A tentative release date, cast and director have not been announced for the film.
Now, Cliff Bleszinski has reacted to Snyder’s interest in a Gears Of War film, saying he “approves” of Snyder leading a movie, though he has one condition. “I approve but only if [Dave Bautista] is Marcus [Fenix],” Bleszinski wrote on Twitter/X.
I approve but only if @DaveBautista is Marcus… https://t.co/yIVq2pWHuu
— Cliff Bleszinski (@therealcliffyb) August 23, 2023
Dave Bautista – who has starred in Knives Out 2, Guardians Of The Galaxy, Knock At The Cabin and Snyder’s Army Of The Dead among other films – has long been campaigning for a Gears Of War movie and a role in it.
In November last year, Bautista shared a video on social media of him donning Marcus Fenix’s armour, captioning the video “I can’t make this any easier”. Watch the video below.
When asked earlier this year if Netflix had reached out to him for the Gears Of War film, Bautista revealed that he had not heard from the studio. “I really hope they will,” he said. “It’s a part that I’ve sought after for years and I feel like I could bring a lot of heart to Marcus Fenix. I really would. I think I would do that part justice. I feel confident in it, so hopefully it’ll come my way and we’ll be having this conversation in a different way sometime.”
In March, Bautista revealed that he turned down a role in the Fast & Furious franchise because he was committed to campaigning for Gears Of War. “I don’t mean to offend anybody. I’m not putting down anything else, I’m just saying [Gears] is way more interesting to me,” Bautista said.
Explaining why he would spurn the chance to appear in such a notable blockbuster series, he said: “I don’t want to pretend like I’m actually interested in something I’m not when there’s something I’m actually really excited about that you guys have under control. Would you consider me for that?”