Variety reveals that the Russo brothers, well known to fans of the Marvel team, worked for a time on a film adaptation of the video game license “League of Legends”.
The animated series Arcane broadcast on Netflix is a huge public and critical hit, and is also preparing to return this November 9 for a second season. If we owe its creation to the brilliant Fortiche studio, it is also and above all a license derived from an ultra popular game: League of Legends.
Online battle arena type video game (referred to under the acronym MOBA, for Multiplayer Online Battle Arena), League of Legends, released in 2009 and developed by the Riot Games studio, has since experienced a meteoric rise, and has even established itself as one of the most played titles in the world. In 2016, Riot Games announced 100 million active players. We have clearly moved since then from a surprise phenomenon to a cultural phenomenon.
$5 million in compensation
Beyond the Arcane series, Riot Games reportedly struggled to develop the MOBA game into a larger entertainment franchise. Part of the problem seemed to be a lack of experience, leading to a situation where Riot Games had to pay two famous directors $5 million to NOT make a League of Legends movie! In this case, the Russo brothers, behind Avengers: Endgame, among others.
Variety reveals the information. In an attempt to make League of Legends a new Hollywood franchise a few years ago, Riot Games then worked with the brother duo to put together a film adapted from this license. Not exactly beginners, then. Until the studio changed its approach to licensing. A change that cost $5 million in compensation paid to the Russos.
Riot Games has, however, not given up on the possibility of a film, as Marc Merril, one of the studio's managers, confirmed at Variety.
