This December, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will bring the fan-favorite hero back to big screen, but that’s not the only game adaptation on the way from Sega. One of the company’s classic arcade games, Shinobi, is also heading to theaters with an adaptation at Universal Pictures. And the project has already lined up a director.
Via The Hollywood Reporter, Sam Hargrave has signed on to direct the Shinobi movie. Hargrave is a former stuntman and stunt coordinator who directed both Extraction movies on Netflix starring Chris Hemsworth. Hargrave is also slated to direct Extraction 3 for the streamer. Ken Kobayashi will write the script for Shinobi.
The original Shinobi hit arcades in 1987, and placed gamers in control of Joe Musashi, a heroic Ninja who is forced to avenge his clan against a ninja crime syndicate called Zeed. Shinobi–which is the original Japanese word for ninja–spawned an additional 13 titles spanning the arcade and home consoles. The most recent game in the series was Shinobi 3D for the Nintendo 3DS in 2011.
A new Shinobi game was announced last December during The Game Awards. That title will feature a throwback 2D-style, but no further details have been revealed about when it may be released.