Dec 18 2008This Will Probably Be Like 'The Wizard'

Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski has acquired the film rights to an article in the Wall Street Journal about a man's obsession with the video game Second Life:

Universal and "Pirates of the Caribbean" helmer Gore Verbinski have acquired a 2007 Wall Street Journal article they will use as the basis for a film about the online fantasy role-playing world and its detrimental impact on the real lives of players.

Verbinski will develop the film as a directing vehicle; Steven Knight ("Eastern Promises") will pen the script.

The article by Alexandra Alter focuses on a married man who spends as many as 20 hours a day on a computer, existing through an avatar who is a thriving, musclebound entrepreneur. In reality, he is a diabetic, chain-smoking 53-year-old.

I just read the article (you can too!) and what the Variety story fails to mention is that the man is an electronic bigamist--married to one woman in real life and another lady in Second Life. So with that conflict and advanced computer graphics taking us INSIDE THE COMPUTER, I guess I can almost imagine how a man literally only playing an online game could be a movie. This part of the story will probably come at the height of the second act:

He upgraded his avatar, buying defined stomach muscles, a furry chest and special hair that sways when he walks.

When you buy yourself special hair that sways when you walk, you're just setting yourself up for a fall.

Universal, Verbinski plan to role-play [Variety]