Guillermo del Toro negotiating video game deal with THQ
Ben Fritz, who covers the business of show business for the Company Town blog, drops by the Hero Complex with a scoop about Guillermo del Toro, who might have been a disappointed tourist in Middle Earth but is now the man of the hour back here on planet Hollywood.
Already one of the most in-demand film directors in Hollywood, Guillermo del Toro is finalizing a deal to bring his creative vision to the video game world -- and the company is THQ, the Agoura Hills-based game publisher previously known mainly for kid-focused games based on licenses from Pixar and Nickelodeon and its WWE wrestling titles.
The director of "Pan's Labyrinth" (and frustrated almost-director of "The Hobbit") already had told MTV that he was poised to announce "a big deal with a big company" to produce "games that are going to be technically and narratively very interesting."
The 45-year-old native of Guadalajara, Mexico, did not reveal the name of the company, but people familiar with the matter confirmed to The Times that he was finalizing a deal with THQ, an outfit that recently began focusing on more ambitious games aimed at adults.
At the fore of that effort is Danny Bilson, THQ's executive vice president of core games, who has a background in film and television. He co-wrote the 1991 Disney film "The Rocketeer," for instance, and also was a co-creator and executive producer for "The Flash," which ran for 22 episodes in the early 1990s. Bilson is leading the effort to make the deal with Del Toro, sources say.
THQ also has recently announced an alliance with SyFy to turn Red Faction into a 2011 live-action television movie of the same title.
By del Toro's own prediction, his deal should close within the next few weeks, at which point THQ may provide some details about the projects. A spokeswoman for THQ declined to confirm any details about a potential deal with del Toro.
-- Ben Fritz
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/herocomplex/2010/08/guillermo-del-toro-negotiating-video-game-deal-with-thq.html
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