This week, excitement surged among fans of the video game Sleeping Dogs when Marvel Cinematic Universe star Simu Liu, known for his role as Shang-Chi in "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," took to Twitter to share that he was collaborating with the rights holders to bring the beloved game to the big screen. However, it seems the project is more advanced than initially suggested. A source close to the development has informed IGN that the Sleeping Dogs movie is indeed in the works, with Simu Liu not only producing but also set to star as the lead character, Wei Shen. IGN has reached out to Square Enix for further comment on this development.
Originally released in 2012 across platforms like PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC, Sleeping Dogs follows the gripping tale of detective Wei Shen as he goes undercover to infiltrate one of Hong Kong's notorious Triad crime syndicates. Despite not meeting the high sales targets set by its publisher Square Enix, the game has garnered a dedicated following and sparked hopes for a sequel.
The journey to adapt Sleeping Dogs into a film has been tumultuous. The project was first announced in 2017 with actor Donnie Yen set to star, but it vanished from the radar a year later. Just weeks ago, Yen confirmed to Polygon that the film had been abandoned, expressing his disappointment and the personal investment he had made in the project. "I spent a lot of time and did a lot of work with these producers, and I even invested some of my own money into obtaining the drafts and some of the rights," Yen explained, reflecting on the challenges of navigating Hollywood's unpredictable landscape.
Simu Liu's tweet sparked confusion and excitement among fans, prompting him to clarify his intentions further. Liu expressed the challenges of pitching the project to executives unfamiliar with the game and highlighted the overwhelming support from fans as a driving force. "So few film projects make it from pitch phase to greenlight," he noted, adding, "Pitching execs who don’t understand the game has been tiring. Everyone’s overwhelming love of Sleeping Dogs here has really given us life! First a movie, then a sequel game for everyone… that’s always been the dream."
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IGN can confirm that Story Kitchen is spearheading the live-action adaptation of Sleeping Dogs, with Square Enix as the rights holder. Story Kitchen has a proven track record in video game adaptations, having contributed to projects like the Sonic the Hedgehog films and Netflix’s animated Tomb Raider series. They are currently involved in the upcoming Streets of Rage adaptation and an adaptation of It Takes Two for Amazon.
Last year, Story Kitchen also announced a film adaptation of Square Enix's Just Cause, directed by Ángel Manuel Soto, known for Blue Beetle. IGN has learned that the Sleeping Dogs project has a writer and a prominent filmmaker attached, though details on a release date or the start of production remain undisclosed.
The Sleeping Dogs movie represents a significant revival for the franchise, which saw its planned video game sequel canceled in late 2013 before production began, and its original developer, United Front Games, closed down three years later. Now, more than a decade after its initial release, Sleeping Dogs might finally be poised for a cinematic awakening.
