Netflix Is Developing a Live-Action ‘PUBG’ Series With Donald Glover Set to Write, Direct and Star
Video game adaptations used to be a risky bet, but streaming has turned them into a genuine genre. Netflix has gone all in, building a slate that mixes animation, live action and even game-show formats. Now the streamer has added one of the biggest games in the world to the list, and the live-action ‘PUBG‘ series comes with a major creative name attached.
Netflix and the game’s publisher Krafton announced that a live-action series based on ‘PUBG: Battlegrounds’ is in development, with Donald Glover attached to write, direct, executive produce and star. It is Glover’s first work for Netflix. His brother and longtime collaborator Stephen Glover is also writing and executive producing.
Glover is best known for creating and starring in ‘Atlanta’, which earned him two Emmys and two Golden Globes. He has also appeared in ‘Community’, ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’, ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ and ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith’, and he voiced Yoshi in ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ this year. Stephen Glover wrote and executive produced across all four seasons of ‘Atlanta’.
The other executive producers are Michael Schaefer for NEON TV, Fam Udeorji for Gilga and Taeseok Jang and Sujin Lee for LV3H, Krafton’s entertainment arm. According to Variety, the series came together after lengthy negotiations and grew out of a first-look deal between Netflix and Krafton.
The game launched in 2017 as ‘PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ and helped popularize the battle royale genre. Up to 100 players are dropped onto an island, where they scavenge for weapons and vehicles while the playable area shrinks until only one survivor is left. Before it went free-to-play, it sold more than 75 million copies, and it holds seven Guinness World Records.
That success is why the project is so notable. But as Variety pointed out, the game has no plot, which means the series will have to invent its own story.
Very little has been shared. Plot details are under wraps, no cast has been announced beyond Glover, and neither Netflix nor Krafton has given a release date. One report says the scripts haven’t been written yet, and another outlet doesn’t expect the show on the service before 2028 at the earliest.
The status also matters. This is a project in development, so it isn’t yet a confirmed series order. Netflix has described it as being in development rather than greenlit to production.
Krafton has tried to bring ‘PUBG’ to the screen before. It announced plans for a film and television expansion in 2020, and in July 2021 it said an animated project would be made with Adi Shankar, the producer behind ‘Castlevania’ and ‘Devil May Cry’, which was widely reported to be heading to Netflix. That project has gone quiet since, and the new announcement doesn’t mention it.
That makes the live-action series look like the franchise’s main path forward at Netflix. Krafton has said it sees ‘PUBG’ as a connected universe rather than just a game.
The streamer’s list of game adaptations keeps getting longer. It includes a live-action ‘Assassin’s Creed’ series, a live-action ‘Gears of War’ film, animated shows based on ‘Devil May Cry’, ‘Minecraft’, ‘Splinter Cell: Deathwatch’, ‘Magic: The Gathering’ and ‘Clash of Clans’, and an ‘Overcooked’ competition series. Established series based on ‘Cyberpunk’ and ‘Splinter Cell’ are also in the mix, and recent partnerships with SEGA and Blizzard have expanded the pipeline.
Against that backdrop, ‘PUBG’ stands out as the biggest name yet, in part because of Glover. His involvement gives the project a prestige profile that video game shows don’t always have.
Glover’s work often mixes genre with a distinctive personal voice, and ‘Atlanta’ was praised for shifting between comedy, drama and surrealism. A game without a story gives him a blank canvas, which could suit that style. It also raises the question of what kind of tone he will choose, whether it’s a survival thriller, a satire or something stranger.
He also has experience wearing multiple hats. Taking on writing, directing and starring in one project is a big commitment, but it’s one he has handled before.
For now, fans will have to wait for casting, a format and a timeline. The next steps will likely include scripts and a decision on whether the show moves to production. If it does, it could become one of the most closely watched game adaptations on the streamer.
Until then, the announcement is a sign of how far the genre has come. A battle royale game with no plot is about to get a story.
What kind of PUBG series would you most like to see?
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