USA Network Orders ‘Masters Of Doom’ Pilot
Whilst tv shows based on video games are all the rage at the moment (see ‘The Witcher’ and ‘Final Fantasy’), USA Network is taking a slightly different tack as they order a pilot for ‘Masters Of Doom’, telling the story behind the classic first-person shooter.
‘Masters Of Doom’ is the true story of two computer geniuses in an obscure corner of America who, along with a group of rebellious misfits, created one of the biggest franchise hits of the 90s, the video game DOOM. John Carmack and John Romero were best friends who became bitter rivals, as they created a video game empire and transformed pop culture forever.
Should it get picked up, the drama is envisaged as an anthology series, with each season focused on a different pivotal moment in gaming history. The first season is based on award-winning journalist and author David Kushner’s landmark nonfiction book of the same name.
‘Masters Of Doom’ will be written by WGA Award winner Tom Bissell, who will also serve as executive producer. Bissell is writer on the ‘Gears of War’, ‘Battlefield’, and fantastic ‘Uncharted’ video game franchises. He has also authored nine books, including ‘Extra Lives: Why Video Games Matter’ and co-author of the New York Times bestseller ‘The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made’. His short fiction has also been anthologized in multiple editions of the ‘Best American Short Stories’ series.
The series comes from UCP (Universal Content Productions) with Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Eric Robinson and Jeremy Bell of The Gotham Group serving as exec producers, alongside James Franco, Dave Franco, Vince Jolivette and Elizabeth Haggard of Ramona Films. They are joined by Kushner. D.J. Goldberg of The Gotham Group as co-executive producer.
If it goes to series ‘Masters Of Doom’ would USA Network’s already interesting line up of new shows which includes anthology drama ‘Briarpatch‘ starring Rosario Dawson and Kim Dickens, a television adaptation of the iconic Aldous Huxley novel ‘Brave New World’, ‘Treadstone’, a tv spin-off from the ‘Bourne’ franchise starring Brian J. Smith & Jeremy Irvine, and ‘Dare Me’, based on the award-winning young adult novel from Megan Abbott.
As ‘Masters Of Doom’ is only a pilot, there is obviously no UK broadcaster at the moment, but we will keep you updated as we hear more.
