While video game adaptations have had the best track record, recent history has seen a noticeable uptick in the quality of these adaptations with successes such as HBO's The Last of Us and Paramount's Sonic the Hedgehog films. Just Cause now looks to get into the action as a film adaptation of the game franchise is in the works, and it appears to have already found its director.
A film adaptation of the popular game franchise from Square Enix and developer Avalanche Studios is in the works from Universal and 87North, with David Leitch and Kelly McCormick set to produce according to The Hollywood Reporter. The adaptation has landed its director, as well, with Blue Beetle's Angel Manuel Soto on board to bring Rico Rodriguez to the big screen.
Soto has been working steadily as a writer and director since 2009, with multiple short and feature films under his belt in the years that followed. He found himself more in-demand after the release of 2020's Charm City Kings, which was met with a largely positive reception at the Sundance Film Festival before finding a home on HBO Max.
He was brought on board to director Blue Beetle in 2021, which was originally slated to release on HBO Max. This was changed following the Warner Bros. Discovery merger and the film was released theatrically in 2023, where it was met with largely positive reviews but underperformed at the box office.
Just Cause isn't the only film on Soto's plate, either, as the Puerto Rican-native is set to direct the Jason Momoa and Dave Bautista-led action comedy The Wrecking Crew for Amazon MGM Studios. Additionally, he is developing a new Transformers film that he is expected to direct and is co-writing alongside screenwriter Marco Ramirez.
It won't be Just Cause's first go-around with trying to get a film adaptation off the ground, either, as multiple attempts have been made since 2010. The most recent attempts saw directors Brad Peyton and Michael Dowse, along with actor Jason Momoa, attached to it at various points between 2017 and 2020.
Let Chaos Reign
Just Cause centers on Rico Rodriguez, a special agent for an organization known only as the Agency, who is sent to various islands across the Caribbean over the course of the franchise to overthrow said island's government.
While the first game was met with mixed-to-positive reviews and decent sales, the series' popularity truly took off with the release of Just Cause 2 in 2010. The sequel featured a greater level of destruction than the first and added a grappling hook, which became one of the most beloved features due to its uses with traversing the world and tethering various items or enemies to each other for hilarious results.
Just Cause 3 and Just Cause 4 would build on the second game's emphasis on chaos and destruction, with the fourth game adding am extreme weather system that could be used to players' benefit.
Just Cause is in development and does not have a set release date.