Feature film rights to the immensely popular GEARS OF WAR videogame from Microsoft and Epic Games (which recently took the game of the year award at GDC) have gone to New Line Cinema, reports VARIETY.
Stuart Beattie (COLLATERAL and 3:10 TO YUMA) is scripting and earned the gig based on a 21-page treatment. Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey are producing.
Epic, which secured all ancillary rights, struck the deal with New Line. Meanwhile, a sequel videogame is in the works. GEARS has sold more than 3 million units and is the fourth best-selling game of 2006 domestically, despite being available only for Xbox 360. It is also the most popular game on Microsoft's Xbox Live online service.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
