DreamWorks is revving up for a new video game adaptation, as the studio is reportedly close to acquiring the movie rights to Need for Speed. The first script for the Electronic Arts racing series was put on the lot earlier this week courtesy United Talent Agency, and it appears DreamWorks is the studio most excited to give the popular franchise a test drive.
The film will reportedly follow a cross-country race from San Francisco to New York, which would likely make it a remodelled version of most recent entry, Need for Speed: The Run. Real Steel writer John Gatins will handle producing duties, while brother George Gatins is at the wheel of the screenplay, his first such effort.
The script made quite a buzz over the weekend, but DreamWorks’ interest in the property also signals a return to the buyers market. Deadline reports that the studio got a recent finance refuelling from backer Reliance, though with the cash influx comes a trimmed down production line of only three to five films a year.
To date, the Need for Speed franchise has sold more than 100 million copies worldwide, which explains why studios were vying to be in the property’s driver seat. Car analogies.
