Live-Action Pac-Man Movie in Development
It would appear that a live-action movie adaptation of the Pac-Man video game franchise is officially in development. What, exactly, a live-action version of the classic arcade video game might even look like is unclear, but it certainly appears to be a thing that Bandai Namco Entertainment is doing.
Pac-Man, if you are not familiar with the franchise, typically follows the eponymous yellow character as he wanders around a maze pursuing and being pursued by ghosts of different colors. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bandai Namco Entertainment and Wayfarer Studios are specifically behind the project. Wayfarer Studios, founded by Justin Baldoni and Steve Sarowitz, is perhaps best known for producing the original movie Clouds, based on the life and music of Zach Sobiech, for Disney+.
Additionally, the live-action adaptation of Pac-Man will reportedly be based on an original idea from Lightbeam Entertainment's Chuck Williams (Sonic the Hedgehog). Man Gargi and Andrew Calof will produce the project alongside Baldoni for Wayfarer Studios while Williams and Tim Kwok are said to be doing so for Lightbeam Entertainment.
Whatever comes out of this, it's worth noting that it is not the first time that Pac-Man has been featured in a movie. Notably, Pac-Man was included prominently in the 2015 live-action movie Pixels as well as in the 2012 animated movie from Disney Wreck-It Ralph. Both of those had Pac-Man outside of his stereotypical context, but still very much in line with who the character is and what he does. What a new live-action adaptation actually focusing on Pac-Man, in particular, might do with the character remains to be seen.
What do you think about the report that Pac-Man is getting a live-action movie adaptation? Is this the sort of thing that you would like to see Bandai Namco do more of in the future? Let us know in the comments, or feel free to reach out and hit me up directly over on Twitter at @rollinbishop in order to talk about all things movies and gaming!