Sony has acquired the rights to produce both a Clue movie and television show, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The move will see TriStar Pictures and Sony Pictures Television developing adaptations of the iconic board game, which sees players trying to solve a murder mystery by determining who committed the crime, where, and with what item. The board game has been around since 1943, when it was originally created by a British board game designer named Anthony E. Pratt.
The board game is no stranger to adaptation, having famously been adapted into a black comedy mystery film in 1985. That film starred Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, and Lesley Ann Warren. While not a box office success, has become a cult classic in the years since its release.
Hasbro had been shopping rights to Clue for a few months
The move also comes a few months after reports began surfacing that Hasbro was shopping the rights to a movie and TV project based on the board game. An adaptation was initially in the works years ago, with Ryan Reynolds attached to star, but that project seemingly fell apart following Disney‘s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, the latter of whom owned the rights previously.
Sony’s acquisition of the Clue rights comes as studios are clamoring to try and grab new IPs to make projects on.
Following the massive success of Barbie, toy company Mattel’s film division also has a number of other live-action films currently in various stages of development, including a Hot Wheels movie produced by J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions, a Magic 8 Ball movie, a Polly Pocket film directed by Lena Dunham, and even a Barney project that is reportedly said to be an “A24-type” of movie.
