DEATH STRANDING Movie Director Reveals Hideo Kojima's Enthusiastic Reaction to the Script

The long-awaited Death Stranding movie is still making its way through development, but director and writer Michael Sarnoski has offered an encouraging update on the project, including how Death Stranding creator Hideo Kojima reacted after reading the script.

Fans have been curious to see how A24 and Sarnoski plan to bring Kojima’s strange, haunting, and deeply cinematic universe to the big screen. While the film is still without a release date, it sounds like things are moving forward smoothly.

Speaking with IGN, Sarnoski confirmed that he’s nearing the finish line on the screenplay. "I'm writing the script right now and hopefully almost done with that and really excited to dive into it."

As the script comes together, Sarnoski has been working closely with both Kojima and A24, refining the story through the usual development process. What’s interesting is that Kojima has given him room to carve out something new within the world fans already know.

"We're working on some revisions together, and they all seem super excited and happy with it. Kojima has been really generous in letting me play in his world but letting me tell a story with my own characters and my own sort of corner of this world, but keeping it honest to the game and doing something that fans will really like,"

That approach lines up with what Kojima previously revealed about the adaptation. Rather than retelling the events of the games starring Norman Reedus, the movie will tell an original story that exists within the same universe.

For longtime fans, that probably raises the obvious question: will any familiar faces show up? Sarnoski isn’t giving away much, but he did leave the door open.

"You might see some characters from the game pop up," Sarnoski teased. "But it definitely feels like something that could happen alongside the game and honors what's going on in the game but very much is its own thing."

One of the more entertaining details from the interview involved Kojima’s famous love of cinema. Anyone who follows the legendary game creator knows movies are practically embedded in his DNA, and apparently that passion showed itself immediately when he read the screenplay.

"I was impressed that when he read this script, without me needing to talk to him about it, he knew every single [movie] reference… He just knows movies incredibly well. So that's been very cool to see."

That probably won’t surprise anyone familiar with Kojima. The developer has spent years sharing film recommendations, celebrating filmmakers, and wearing his movie obsession proudly. So the fact that he instantly caught every cinematic reference in Sarnoski’s script feels perfectly on brand.

With Sarnoski crafting a new story inside the Death Stranding universe and receiving enthusiastic feedback from Kojima himself, there’s plenty of reason for fans to be optimistic about where this adaptation is headed.

And the Death Stranding universe continues to expand beyond the upcoming film. An anime adaptation is also currently in development, with Raised by Wolves writer Aaron Guzikowski attached to write the project.

For now, the Death Stranding movie remains undated, but it sounds like the creative team is making steady progress toward bringing one of gaming’s most fascinating worlds to theaters.