The next Game of Thrones-type sensation? It might not be on HBO, but it’s certainly in the cards for Netflix.
The streaming service announced they’ll team up with Joe and Anthony Russo, the directors of Avengers: Endgame, to create a series based around the popular tabletop trading card game Magic: The Gathering. Co-produced by Wizards of The Coast and Hasbro’s Allspark Animation, the animated series will expand on the stories of the Planeswalkers, aka Magic’s magic-wielding heroes and villains.
(Lost already? Start with this intro Magic wiki.)
The Russos will executive produce the show, according to a Netflix press release. The series will also feature “creative talent” culled from other acclaimed animated (and live-action) series and movies such as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Batman: The Animated Series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Rick & Morty, Firefly, Agent Carter, Ultimate Spider-Man and The Lego Movies.
“More fans are enjoying Magic now than at any time in its 25-year history,” says Chris Cocks, President of Wizards of the Coast, in a statement. “We’re thrilled to collaborate with Joe and Anthony Russo to bring Magic: The Gathering’s rich and diverse cast of characters and worlds to Netflix in a way that will delight our many fans and those new to the franchise.”
“We have been huge fans and players of Magic: The Gathering for as long as it has been around, so being able to help bring these stories to life through animation is a true passion project for us,” the Russos said in a joint statement.
As Polygon notes, Magic has been a hot property in Hollywood for a long time. The game itself was estimated to have 20 million players worldwide as of 2015. And a few years back, Fox actually hired Game of Thrones writer Bryan Cogman to write a feature adaptation.
If you’re missing GoT and want a replacement sooner — or maybe one less animated — your best bet might be Amazon’s upcoming adaptation of the fantasy series The Wheel of Time or any one of these 10 upcoming genre shows.
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