Acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro has confirmed that he was once attached to early concepts for a BioShock movie adaptation, revealing that the long-rumored project was ultimately scrapped following what he described as a “disastrous” phone call. Speaking with IGN as part of the IGN30 Icons Series, the Pan’s Labyrinth director said the project died before it ever got off the ground, and that the experience left him firmly opposed to adapting video games for the screen once and for all.
Del Toro’s involvement in a BioShock film has been long-rumored among gaming fans, and he was no stranger to the idea himself. Back in 2017, he admitted that he’d love to see the game’s story brought to the silver screen, following a previous attempt that never materialized with director Gore Verbinski attached. Now, years later, he has officially confirmed his relationship with a BioShock adaptation — though, as it turns out, it never saw the light of day, and there appears to have been drama behind its premature demise.
A “Disastrous” Conversation
When asked during the interview whether he’d ever want to make a film adaptation of a video game, del Toro was candid about his past attempts and the reasons behind his reluctance. “You know, I tried,” he said. “We had a very contentious call about a couple of games. I find that the dynamics of a video game are very different than a movie. They may be cinematically similar in terms of the camera moving and this and that, but the storytelling is very different, because you’re not solving puzzles. You’re not assembling.”
The director went on to explain the fundamental differences between interactive media and film, drawing on his own experience developing Insane, his planned trilogy of dark, cinematic games that never saw release. “When we made the structure for Insane, we created what I call a mandala. You have to give the illusion of an infinite sandbox and you lead audiences to the right or to the left through their ‘own decisions,’ but you
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