Universal Planning BioShock Movie

Universal Studios has tapped Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski to helm a feature film based on the video game BioShock.

Universal Studios has started the wheels rolling on creating a feature film based on the hit first-person shooter video game BioShock, with Pirates of the Caribbean‘s Gore Verbinksi assigned to both direct and produce. Aviator writer John Logan is attached to write the first draft of the screenplay.

According to Variety, the deal is structured in such a way that BioShock won’t get stuck in a stagnant turnaround cycle (like Microsoft’s plans for a motion picture based on the Halo franchise); BioShock publisher Take-Two Interactive—which also handles the Grand Theft Auto franchise will receive a multi-million dollar advance against a percentage of gross revenue on the film.

Verbinksi told Variety that the game’s design elements and unusually visual characters inspired him to see the game as a film. Take-Two had reportedly been approached by several studios about producing a BioShock film, but waited until the game had reaped end-of-year holdiay sales (and a slate of industry awards) before taking the project to Creative Artists Agency. Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick, a former Fox executive, reportedly helmed the proposal himself, rather than bringing a producer onboard.

No tentative release date has been set for a BioShock film, although Take-Two is prepping a sequel for the game that’s expected to hit retailers in 2009. If a BioShock movie proves successful—or even a blockbuster—Verbinski will have added another twist on his path to the upper echelon of Hollywood movers and shakers, first helming a series of movies based on an amusement park ride, and then moving on to a film version of a video game. What’s next—Yahtzee, the Movie?