by Conan Simmons – February 8, 2021 – 5:04 pm
The recent market activity on Wall Street that saw a group of retail investors on the social media platform Reddit create a short squeeze against hedge funds that were betting against the stock of video game store GameStop has now sparked at least a half dozen film projects.
Before the volatility in the stock had begun to settle Hollywood was tripping over itself to rush into production on what they believe is the next ‘The Big Short’, the Academy Award winning film that detailed the 2008 stock market crash.
Most of these developments were first reported by Deadline.
Jason Blum, of the successful production company Blumhouse which made hits of horror films like ‘Get Out’ and ‘The Purge’, is teaming up with the creator of hit series ‘Billions’, Andrew Ross Sorkin, to develop a movie about the Reddit influenced short squeeze for HBO Max. It seems it is only the most recent project to be placed in development as others are further along.
MGM has already optioned a book about the GameStop short squeeze that is yet to be written from author Ben Mezrich. His previous book, ‘The Accidental Billionaires’ was adapted by Aaron Sorkin into the Oscar winning film ‘The Social Network’ directed by David Fincher.
A third feature film about the hot topic issue is among the furthest along. Netflix has tapped Mark Boal, the screenwriter of two excellent Oscar winning films ‘The Hurt Locker’ and ‘Zero Dark Thirty’, to write a script with rising star Noah Centineo attached to star in an as of yet unspecified role.
The furthest along of the films based on the GameStop short squeeze that cost hedge funds to lose billions, is a feature documentary that is reportedly already filming from director Jonah Tulis, whose previous documentary ‘Console Wars’ about the Sega rivalry with Nintendo in the early 1990’s was a hit at Sundance.
Another documentary on the GameStop issue is in the works from directors Chris Temple and Zach Ingrasci and being produced by XTR.
If all these projects weren’t enough there is also a limited series entitled ‘To the Moon’ in development. The limited series is being written by Noam Tomaschoff and executive produced by Anne Clements.
How many of these projects will ultimately be made is anybody’s guess. The short squeeze that moved the markets in recent weeks (and likely saved AMC theaters from bankruptcy), doesn’t seem to be the high stakes type of narrative that films generally look for.
While many on Wall Street are mad about losing millions, if not billions, seeing their short bets squeezed out, it’s not like it had much effect on the everyday person who doesn’t pay attention to the stock market. Not like the housing market crash of 2008 that caused the Great Recession which affected millions of people. Even then, ‘The Big Short’ included a scene of Margot Robbie in a bubble bath explaining sub-prime mortgages in hopes of keeping audiences interested.
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