It’s time to head off to wonderland, or at least it will be in the relatively near future. x-men and watchmen co-writer David Hayter is developing a new TV adaptation of the beloved tale, only it’s not exactly based on the literary source material, but rather Electronic Arts’ action-adventure game American McGee’s Alice. Don’t expect to see Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter in this one.
The series, in partnership with Abandon Entertainment, comes from the beloved and highly acclaimed American McGee’s Alice game franchise, and both Alice and Alice Madness Returns are on the adaptation table, according to THR. Both games were designed by American James McGee, who had previously worked on other famous hits such as Conviction II and earthquake, and they are based on the 1865 children’s novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and 1871 on the other side of the mirror by Lewis Carroll, but with darker underpinnings.
First released as a PC game in late 2000, American McGee’s Alice is a third-person action-adventure video game that offers a dark and violent take on the beloved novels. It follows Alice after her family is killed in a house fire, where she is placed in a psychiatric clinic, and due to the emotional trauma she has suffered, Alice travels to Wonderland. The next series will center on a similar plot, with Alice needing to improve herself mentally in order to not only solve her parents’ deaths, but also save Wonderland from falling victim to a bloody takeover.
There is currently no other concrete news available on the TV adaptation. For now, the series has not yet found a hosting platform and has not yet started the casting process. So even though it’s in development, it’s technically possible that it won’t be allowed on the show until all is said and done. But it’s still early days, so it might be a while before we hear about the next steps from hookah-smoking bugs.
David Hayter has had a long career in the entertainment world, from acting and screenwriting to directing and producing. He has lent his voice to numerous anime projects for the English dub and even voiced King Shark on The CW. the flash. He wrote the screenplay for x-men and X2, as good as wolves with Jason Momoa, and an upcoming Voltron live-action movie, not to mention his work on Zack Snyder’s ending change watchmen adaptation.
Interestingly, this recently announced TV project isn’t the only adaptation for Alice which has been developed. In 2000, even before the first game was released, a film version was in the works at Dimension Films, with Wes Craven and John August serving as director and screenwriter, respectively. The film was going to be a computer-animated feature with a 2003 release, with names such as Natalie Portman and Milla Jovovich in talks for the lead role. But with studio moves, cast changes, and licensing rights changes over the years, production was put on hiatus and hasn’t restarted since.
The EA title is just the latest in a long line of games to adapt to screens large and small. Paramount+ just released the trailer for their highly anticipated sound Halo series, based on the acclaimed action game franchise (with Bungie set to be acquired by Sony), as Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg prepare to star in the new Unexplored movie. One of The Rock’s next films is also expected to be a major video game movie, details of which are expected to be announced later this year. Game adaptations are extraordinarily random, so hopefully American McGee’s Alice falls on the “hit” side of things, because it sure looks intriguing!
With watchmen and x-men the writer David Hayter at the head of American McGee’s Alice, it would be surprising if it was not acquired by a platform sooner rather than later. Fingers crossed it makes it to series and this adaptation doesn’t get ruined, but in the meantime, check out CinemaBlend’s 2022 TV Schedule to see what other shows to watch!
