Sony Pictures and Story Kitchen Adapting Video Game The Drifter into Live-Action Movie
- Sony Pictures has acquired the live-action feature film rights to the award-winning independent video game The Drifter, according to a report by Deadline.
- Johnson and Michael Lawrence Goldberg will produce the film adaptation.
- In the game's plot, the main character witnesses a brutal murder before high-tech soldiers drown him.
Sony Pictures has acquired the live-action feature film rights to the award-winning independent video game The Drifter, according to a report by Deadline. The project brings the pulp adventure title from Australian developer Powerhoof to the big screen following a competitive adaptation push by production company Story Kitchen.
Production Team and Creative Leadership
Johnson and Michael Lawrence Goldberg will produce the film adaptation. Timothy I. Stevenson and Elena Sandoval are attached to the project as executive producers. While writers and directors have approached the production with early pitches, neither a screenwriter nor a filmmaker has been officially announced by the studio yet.
Source Material and Game Background
In the game’s plot, the main character witnesses a brutal murder before high-tech soldiers drown him. He subsequently wakes up to fight for survival while uncovering an illicit plot involving shadowy corporations and a dangerous obsession. Powerhoof, an independent Australian studio founded by Dave Lloyd and Barney Cumming, launched the title on PC in July 2025 following their previous game releases Crawl and Regular Human Basketball. The title later expanded with releases on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 in June 2026.
Industry Recognition and Studio Slate
The modern take on the classic 2D point-and-click adventure format also secured category wins for visual art, narrative, and sound design. For production partner Story Kitchen, the project expands an extensive slate of video game adaptations that includes Tomb Raider projects for Prime Video and Netflix, a Life Is Strange series for Prime Video, a Just Cause movie at Universal, and a Streets of Rage adaptation at Lionsgate. Sony Pictures has not yet announced a cast or a target release date for The Drifter.