Entertainment

Seriously? A Tetris movie is coming from Mortal Kombat's producer

It could be a blockbuster. At least that's what a Chinese-American movie studio hopes to produce in a sci-fi thriller based on the popular 1980s video game Tetris.

Sci-fi thriller to be first joint venture for U.S.-China studio

An $80 million US sci-fi movie based on the classic video game Tetris will be the first project from the newly formed Threshold Global Studios, a Chinese-American movie studio. (Mark Lennihan/Associated Press)

It could be a blockbuster. At least that's what a Chinese-American movie studio hopes to produce in a sci-fi thriller based on the popular 1980s video game Tetris.

The $80 million US project is the first from the newly formed Threshold Global Studios, a joint venture between Chinese entertainment investor Bruno Wu's Seven Star Works and producer Larry Kasanoff's California-based Threshold Entertainment Group, which produces live action movies.

The joint venture "will make cross-cultural movies for the global market," a statement released Tuesday from the studio said. Kasanoff added that the 32-year-old video game Tetris "is a perfect first project for this strategy."

Larry Kasanoff, who produced the Mortal Kombat film, calls Tetris the 'perfect first project' for the new studio's strategy of making 'cross-cultural movies for the global market.' (Mark Lennihan/Associated Press)

The movie, whose name was not mentioned in the release, follows in the mould of such computer game-inspired film productions as Resident EvilTomb Raider and Mortal Kombat.

Shooting will begin next year and financing is complete, the statement said, and there are plans to film in China and feature Chinese actors.

Kasanoff has previously produced two Mortal Kombat movies. Wu is founder and CEO of Sun Seven Stars Media Group, a private media and entertainment investment company in China.