Hollywood insiders are said to be "flabbergasted" by the terms of Ubisoft's impending Assassin's Creed movie deal, which is said to be 'nearing completion' with Sony Pictures.

Vulture reports the game publisher has been able to demand and receive an "unheard of amount of control" over the movie project, which according to anonymous film types means we're unlikely to see it ever made.

"Sony had to grant the gaming company approval over just about everything - budget, principal cast, script, release date - and Hollywood spectators are flabbergasted," it reports.

One incredulous insider points out, "As a director, even Steven Spielberg cannot get this kind of deal."

One Hollywood talent agent who represents "a smaller video game publisher" went as fare as declaring the movie project dead.

"The whole Ubisoft/Sony deal is a waste of ink, paper and time. The level of control Sony gave up means, effectively, that Assassin's Creed will never - and I mean never - get made."

Another anonymous studio chief who ultimately dropped out of the bidding added, "They want to be able to pull the plug on the whole movie's development if they decide to. It's ridiculous."
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Another supposed insider was more understanding of Ubisoft's position: "It's [Ubisoft's] billion-dollar brand, so I get that they're protective.

"But they're not moviemakers, and the only way to make sure it's a bad movie is to undervalue what movie studios do - and this is a deal that totally undervalues what movie studios do."

If concerns from the film industry turn out to be true, Assassin's Creed would join the long list of signed film projects that never happened, perhaps most famously Halo.

[ Source: Vulture ]