Video game publisher Sega, fresh off the success of its live-action Sonic films, is looking to adapt more games into films or TV shows. Specifically, Sega says it’s in the early stages to produce live-action adaptations of Atlus games, like Persona and Shin Megami Tensei.
Sega revealed this bit of news to IGN, telling the outlet that it wants to expand how it tells stories, and its plans to make this a big part of its business strategy. Or to put it another way, some recent live-action game adaptations have raked in a ton of money at the box office, including its own Sonic films, and it wants to keep that money train rolling.
JRPG franchise Persona sounds like it might be the first game to get the live-action treatment as part of Sega’s new adaptation-focused initiative.
“Atlus’ worlds are filled with high drama, cutting-edge style, and compelling characters,” says, Toru Nakaharaon, a lead producer behind the live-action Sonic movies and Sega’s head of entertainment productions. “Stories like those from the Persona franchise really resonate with our fans and we see an opportunity to expand the lore like no one has seen—or played—before.”
“Together, Sega and Atlus are working to bring these stories and worlds to life through new mediums and for new audiences,” added Nakaharaon.
Of course, this early on Sega didn’t really have much else to say about these projects, when to expect them, what forms they will take, who is involved in their production, nor where they might end up. All Sega told IGN was that it’s currently talking to various studios and producers about any future adaptations.
But with 200+ streaming services and channels out there, all desperate to shove out as much content as possible to keep subscriber numbers growing, it’s not hard to see a future where an Amazon or a Hulu would be interested in a live-action series based on a popular franchise like Persona.
Kotaku has reached out to Sega and asked if the company had any more details to share about any of its projects.
You can add any potential Persona TV shows or movies to the growing list of video game adaptations currently in the works. Hollywood in recent years has become more hungry than ever for established IP and franchises to build movies and shows around, and video games have quickly become the latest places for producers to dig for the next big hit.
Meanwhile, if all this talk of Persona movies has got you excited to go back and play the original JRPG games, Sega is re-releasing Persona 3, 4, and 5 across basically every platform, including the Switch.