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Universal Hires Peter Berg to Direct Their Battleship Movie

by Alex Billington
May 18, 2009

Another day, another board game movie. Universal is adapting the Milton Bradley board game Battleship and has hired Peter Berg (The Rundown, The Kingdom, Hancock) to direct. Wow. Can anyone else believe this? Universal has a deal with Hasbro and has been setting up huge projects based on various board games like Monopoly and Candyland previously, but now Battleship? Brothers Jon and Erich Hoeber (of only the upcoming Whiteout so far) will write the script. The game will, obviously, be turned into an epic naval action adventure movie. Now I can use this pun properly - Peter Berg has "sunk" to a new low today.

I've been fighting for Peter Berg all along, I generally think he's a good director (give or take Hancock), and I was looking forward to seeing what he could do with Dune. You know, in the end we'll probably see a very epic naval movie just like Pirates of the Caribbean, so why are we all complaining? Universal is just trying to capitalize on brand familiarity, and because we all know the story will be stretched so far from the concept of the game, it won't matter in the end. I think I'm just more baffled that Peter Berg would take on this project. Why not give it to some director who can afford to lose their integrity? Only time will tell.

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Reader Feedback - 21 Comments

If they say "you sunk my battleship" that will be worth the money.

Movieraider321 on May 18, 2009

This smells of failure. Are they this dreadfully low on good writers in the industry or is the glass ceiling so hard to pentrate all the good new potential writing talent is overlooked? Ridiculous.

JimD on May 18, 2009

Check please...table two.

Jeep-Fu on May 18, 2009

I don't quite understand the whole board game adaptation to a movie. Universal is really reaching here.

Darunia on May 18, 2009

More importantly he was down to direct Lone Survivor which we've heard nothing more on, I know development has its ups and downs but jesus are they that low on ideas to put this before NY times bestseller options?

CHACK on May 18, 2009

I definitely think that a Battleship movie - because of the naval action/adventure potential - will be considerably more watchable than Candyland or Monopoly!

Eric on May 18, 2009

Oh-kayeee... odd, but I have been craving some large scale naval skirmish action lately. (?)

bozoconnors on May 18, 2009

why???????!?!?!?!?

goosehorn on May 18, 2009

I don't see how you can attack something like this, when you praise Pirates of the Caribbean.

galactus on May 18, 2009

Good Naval battle movies are very few, I would actually like to see this one work. I love the whole Naval combat idea. But I just get a "sinking" feeling it's going to be bad.

Raymond on May 18, 2009

I hope this movie has as much action as the game!!

Google The Oct8pus on May 18, 2009

Turning these board games into movies to capitalize on brand recognition is just about the most retarded idea Hollywood has ever had. And you have to admit that's against some pretty stiff competition!

Wottock Hunt on May 18, 2009

Boardgames??? Why not some of the RPG like Vampire: The Masqurade? or Kult?

David Banner on May 18, 2009

Interesting... They could turn a game of Battleship into an updated version of Wargames.

Tyr on May 18, 2009

I didn't think there was much worse than all the reboots/remakes coming out of Hollywood, and yet here it is.

avoidz on May 18, 2009

I'd rather see Hungry Hungry Hippos or Trouble

mxr5150 on May 20, 2009

Why not make a movie about BattleTech or some game which has an actual *story* to it? On the other hand, it sure would be cool to see two fleets of battleships, destroyers, submarines, etc., pound the heck out of each other Star Wars-style.

MFalsehood on Jul 10, 2009

What next? dominos? chess (oh, that's a play)

mark on Aug 8, 2009

I am not too sure at all about this movie. It may do well though.

Hsa on Sep 14, 2009

Hey i got a copy of the script here is a sneakpeek fight scene from the movie D5 Miss f10 Miss D2 Miss A10 HIt

JOhn on Sep 22, 2009

I have been watching them film for the past week ON the battleship Missouri on Ford Island, Pearl Harbor Naval Station. From what I have seen, this is going to be a top notch film.....I believe that this film will be as entertaining and realistic as the film "Pearl Harbor" was back in 2001.

Carl on Sep 11, 2010

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