According to comments from producer Basil Iwanyk, a film based on Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell series of games has been scrapped a decade after its initial release.
Ubisoft’s flagship series tells the story of Sam Fisher, an operative of the fictional NSA division “Third Echelon” who fights criminals and terrorists to protect the homeland.
The film was to star Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road, Venom) as Fisher and was to be directed by Doug Liman (Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Edge of Tomorrow).
But according to The Direct, Iwanyk confirmed that the film is no longer being made due to budget and script issues:
“That movie would have been great… I just couldn’t get it right, in terms of the script, the budget. But it was great. We had a million different versions, but it will be hardcore and cool. It’s one of the ones that got away, which is really sad.”
Despite this setback, Splinter Cell fans can still look forward to Splinter Cell Deathwatch, a Netflix anime based on the series currently in production and slated for release in 2025.