LOS ANGELES, May 18 — Chinese and Western actors will be called upon to bring life to an US$80 million (RM321.636 million) film based on classic video game Tetris.

The US and Chinese co-production is being headed up by media and investment group chairman Bruno Wu and American producer Larry Kasanoff.

Tetris became a phenomenon after it was bundled with the Game Boy. — AFP pic

Each had previously mooted Tetris adaptations on separate occasions, and now with Kasanoff pitching the adaptation in Cannes, it’s apparent the two projects are in fact one and the same.

Kasanoff has producer’s credits on a handful titles associated with the Lego and Mortal Kombat franchises; in the 90s he was part of the team behind Arnold Schwarzenegger action movie True Lies, Kathryn Bigelow’s Strange Days (written by James Cameron), and a sci-fi version of Beowulf starring Christopher Lambert.

More recently he has executive produced two martial arts-oriented series for TV.

Speaking to Deadline in Cannes, and with production earmarked for 2017, Kasanoff said that Tetris as a sci-fi thriller is “not at all what you think; it will be a cool surprise”. — AFP-Relaxnews