Netflix Boards Feature Adaptation Of Slocap Game ‘Sifu’ With T.S. Nowlin Writing; Chad Stahelski’s 87Eleven Banner Joins Story Kitchen As Producers
EXCLUSIVE: Netflix has come aboard the feature adaptation of Slocap’s popular video game Sifu and tapped T.S. Nowlin to write the script. Insiders add that Chad Stahelski and his 87Eleven Entertainment banner have joined Story Kitchen as producers, and he will now produce with his partners Jason Spritz and Alex Young, as will Dmitri M. Johnson and Mike Goldberg for Story Kitchen.
The video game developed and published by Sloclap tells a story of revenge set in modern-day China. It follows the student of a martial arts school’s master (Sifu) as he seeks to avenge the murder of his mentor. The twist, however, is that thanks to a magical talisman, each time our hero dies, he’s resurrected, but the price paid is that he ages with every use. And should he become too old too fast, his death shall become permanent, and his quest unfulfilled.
Timothy I. Stevenson & Elena Sandoval are executive producing. Jeff Ludwig is also executive producing alongside Sloclap’s Jordan Layani and Pierre Tarno.
Within the first three weeks of the game’s 2022 release, Sifu sold over 1 million units.
No stranger to helping launch tentpole-size franchises, Nowlin is best known for adapting The Maze Runner movies and also recently penned the Netflix film The Adam Project. He is repped by CAA, Entertainment 360 and McKuin Frankel Whitehead LLP.
Stahelski’s 87Eleven has various film projects in development including Highlander for Lionsgate with Henry Cavill; Ghost of Tsushima (Sony/PlayStation), based on the action-adventure game set in feudal Japan; Rainbow Six based on the Tom Clancy novel and starring Michael B. Jordan; an adaptation of the Black Samurai novels (Netflix); an adaptation of Trevanian’s Shibumi (Warner Bros) and Man From Nowhere (NewLine). Stahelski and 87Eleven are repped by WME and attorney Tara Kole.
Story Kitchen is the company is behind high-profile adaptations such as Tomb Raider, Just Cause, Streets of Rage and Shinobi. It has also brought acclaimed indie games to the screen including It Takes Two and Ruiner. Story Kitchen is repped by WME and Pryor Cashman.