You knew Nathan Drake would live to adventure another day. After a tumultuous ride with David O. Russell (The Fighter) — one that ultimately led to his leaving the project — Sony has moved to hire Neil Burger (Limitless, The Illusionist) to helm the film adaptation of Uncharted.
Variety reports that “Burger landed the offer after the studio and producers Avi Arad, Ari Arad, Charles Roven and Alex Gartner sparked to his new take on the pic, which Sony will now move forward with.”
A new take is just what Sony was looking for, as Russell was very public with his vision veering far from the games and incorporating such elements as Drake’s family, which is not seen in the series, all in a script at nearly 200 pages. Mark Wahlberg was cast as Nathan Drake, but there has been no word (yet) on whether he will stay with the project as it seemed to be due to his collaborative relationship with Russell.
Burger has been quietly making a name with himself with sleeper hits like this year’s Limitless. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune would be his biggest undertaking, especially with Sony looking to make the series into a tent-pole film franchise in much the same way the games have shaped PS3’s image.