All articles tagged with #the initiative
Angelina Jolie is set to star in the upcoming spy thriller 'The Initiative,' reuniting with director Doug Liman, with Universal Pictures in talks to acquire the project. The film aims to bring Jolie back to her action thriller roots, with plot details under wraps, and is written by F. Scott Frazier. The project is produced by Jeff Kirschenbaum and is part of Jolie's ongoing diverse career in film and theater.
Angelina Jolie and director Doug Liman are teaming up again for a spy thriller titled 'The Initiative,' with Jolie starring as a rogue spy named Bright. The film, described as a 'Training Day' set in the world of espionage, is produced by RK Films and is aiming to start production in early 2026. The project reunites Jolie and Liman, who previously collaborated on 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith,' and involves a script by F. Scott Frazier.
Microsoft has canceled the development of 'Perfect Dark' and 'Everwild,' closing The Initiative studio, as part of a broader restructuring following over 9,000 layoffs across the company. Despite these cancellations, Xbox still has more than 40 active projects, and ongoing titles from the recent showcase are unaffected.
Microsoft's Perfect Dark reboot, developed by The Initiative, has reportedly made "little meaningful progress" since its 2020 unveiling due to a lack of clear vision and direction, leading to multiple setbacks and over 35 staff departures. Crystal Dynamics was brought in to assist in 2021, but the project had to be reworked from scratch, and it is still in pre-production and roughly two to three years away from release.
Perfect Dark, the Xbox exclusive reboot of Rare's 2000 spy-themed shooter, is still "two to three years away" due to development struggles. The Initiative and its partner studios struggled to settle on a cohesive vision for the project, leading to multiple departures and a split with Halo co-development studio Certain Affinity. The project has since been rebuilt in Unreal Engine 5 with Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics. Despite progress, the game is still in pre-production and won't be ready for several years. Microsoft has been hands-off with the project, and Head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty says the team has "hit their rhythm" with the game.
Xbox and The Initiative's reboot of Perfect Dark is reportedly not set to release until at least 2025 due to years of development struggles, including a fraught co-development partnership, pandemic-related issues, technological challenges, an ongoing exodus of significant talent, and unclear direction from management. The game has been in development limbo, with builds being thrown out and a decision to switch to Unreal Engine 5 resulting in the project needing to be essentially started over from scratch. The game now has stronger foundations, but it still has a long way to go.