Settlers of Catan has been optioned for film and television.
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I am going to let that sink in. Catan, a board game about bickering with your friends about (god damn) WHEAT - may, at some point in the future, settle into your local multiplex theater or home television set up.
Producer Gail Katz has obtained the film and television rights to the award winning German game which kickstarted the board game revolution 20 years ago.
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"I've been wanting to see an adaptation of the game for years, ever since my Catan-obsessed college-aged kids introduced me to it," said Katz in a release. "The island of Catan is a vivid, visual, exciting and timeless world with classic themes and moral challenges that resonate today. There is a tremendous opportunity to take what people love about the game and its mythology as a starting point for the narrative."
Mythology? That is a big word. One that I do not associate with Catan. Do not mistake my snark for indignity, this is exciting news. But our track record for board games with no discernible story stands at an abysmal 0%. Thank you, Peter Berg.
At least Magic: The Gathering has some storytelling elements.
Regardless, the rights have been merely acquired. What Katz and her company, Gail Katz Productions, does with them has not been determined. Katz has been largely out of the game in recent years, though she was responsible for some of the biggest blockbusters of the 90s - Air Force One, In The Line Of Fire and The Perfect Storm in 2000.
"Up next for Katz is Pawn Sacrifice, a Cold War drama based on the life of enigmatic chess legend Bobby Fischer that premiered to critical acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2014. Starring Tobey Maguire, Liev Schreiber, Peter Sarsgaard and Michael Stuhlbarg and directed by Edward Zwick, the film will be released domestically in 2015."
Settlers Of Catan - which will now be simply called Catan in its upcoming 5th edition - is a resource management, exploration and building board game. Players trade amongst themselves, build up towns and attempt to outmaneuver their opponents in a wonderful Chess-like experience.
Let's hear those ideas, people!
