Minecraft fans have hoped for a Minecraft film for years.
The world of Minecraft is full of so much lore and endless adventure possibilities. It makes sense for there to be a film to explore how a narrative could fit into this blocky world.
There have been a few Minecraft-related media projects in the last 10 years, such as Netflix’s special Minecraft: Story Mode the Minecraft: Story Mode video game.
But these have followed the same blocky animation that Minecraft is known for.
Minecraft: The Movie will be Mojang’s first dive into a live-action adaptation of the immensely popular game.
Fans have been waiting since 2014 for it to be released. So how far away is the film’s release date? And why has it taken so long to make?
Minecraft: The Movie Possible Release Window Discussion and Predictions
Minecraft: The Movie has had several attached release dates over the years. The most recent release date was March 4, 2022, but that was further pushed back.
As of August 2022, there is yet to be a certain final release date for fans to look forward to.
Rumors of a potential Minecraft film started spreading across the internet in February 2014.
Though there were no credible sources for these rumors other than a few supposed leaks.
Then on February 27th 2014, the creator of Minecraft (Notch, aka Markus Alexej Persson) proved the rumors to be true.
He addressed the rumors in a Tweet, saying he ‘wanted to be the leak!’
In the same Tweet, Notch confirmed that he was working on a ‘potential Minecraft Movie’ in partnership with Warner Brothers.
It was too early in the movie’s development for talks about a release date at the time of the Tweet.
A release date didn’t come until June 27th 2016, when Mojang uploaded the blog post ‘THE MINECRAFT MOVIE HAS A RELEASE DATE!‘
The article, written and uploaded by Vu Bui for Mojang, named May 24th 2019 as the film’s release date. Fans also got to find out the official title for the film – Minecraft: The Movie.
However, the director and screenwriter attached to the film (Rob McElhenney and Jason Fuchs) were replaced in August 2018.
This pushed the release date back to an unknown date.
On April 16th 2019, just over a month from the initial release date, Mojang gave an update about the film’s release.
Minecraft: The Movie had been pushed back 3 whole years. It was given the new release date of March 4th 2022.
Mojang reassured fans in a typical Minecraft-styled humorous manner that though the film’s release was years away, the wait would be worth it.
Then the pandemic happened, and the release date was removed from the website altogether in 2020.
Since then, Mojang has not hinted at or announced another date for Minecraft: The Movie.
Given that Minecraft: The Movie was announced way back in 2014 and the film’s creative crew seems to be more established now than previously, it shouldn’t be much longer until a final release date is locked in place.
Minecraft: The Movie Plot
Mojang confirmed the plot of Minecraft: The Movie via a blog post in April 2019.
Aided by a rag-tag group of adventurers, a teenage girl must save the blocky Overworld from the evil Ender Dragon before everything she knows is destroyed.
Considering Minecraft’s open-world, directionless nature, the film’s plot could literally have been about anything.
That freedom is partly why the production crew has changed so much over the last 8 years.
Each new director and screenwriter associated with Minecraft: The Movie has looked at the world of Minecraft through a new lens, developing a story out of a non-narrative game.
The plot that Mojang detailed in their 2019 blog post was posted when Peter Sollett was still set to direct and write the film.
Even though Jared Hess is now the film’s named director and Hubbel Palmer and Chris Bowman the screenwriters, there has been no news about the core plot changing.
The plot for Minecraft: The Movie sounds very action/ adventure based. But the current crew’s involvement hints that the film may have a comedic aspect.
Hess is best known for directing and writing the 2004 hit teen comedy Napoleon Dynamite.
Chris Bowman and Hubble Palmer have previously collaborated on the 2012 TV series of Napoleon Dynamite.
The pair are also known for their work on Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life – a family comedy in the same vein as Diary of a Wimpy Kid, with fun and cartoonish animated features throughout.
But it seems that Minecraft: The Movie will be more of a teen/ family comedy with an action-packed plot than an action film as Shawn Levy initially pitched.
Minecraft: The Movie Characters
Minecraft: The Movie is based around a new original character in the Minecraft franchise – an unnamed teenage girl.
This teenage girl will be the film’s main character with a new take on Minecraft’s Ender Dragon acting as the main villain.
On April 18th 2022, Deadline reported that Aquaman’s Jason Momoa was forefront in discussions for Minecraft: The Movie’s cast.
In the film, there will also be a group of adventurers that accompany the teen girl on her quest. A group that is sure to be full of quirky, fun characters.
Perhaps this group will feature some of the pre-existing characters in the Minecraft universe.
Minecraft is not a narrative video game. However, players still get to choose who to play as when they explore the open world.
The two characters currently available for play are Steve and Alex.
As the only two characters in the game, it would be surprising if Steve and Alex don’t show up in the movie at some point.
Read More: Mobs in Minecraft 1.19
Where Can I Watch Minecraft: The Movie?
During the release date announcement in June 2016, Mojang said Minecraft: The Movie was to be released in cinemas in 3D and IMAX.
Warner Brothers’ 2022 releases so far have been theatrical. But have then been available on streaming sites within a few weeks of the theatrical release.
So it is likely that Minecraft: The Movie will first be released in theatres and then on streaming websites shortly after.
Why Was Minecraft: The Movie Delayed?
Many films and media projects have been delayed in the last few years because of the pandemic.
Minecraft: The Movie was also a casualty of the pandemic, causing major product delays.
But the pandemic was not the only reason Minecraft: The Movie has been so delayed.
Several directors, producers, and screenwriters have been associated with the project, only to be replaced a few months later.
Deadline reported on April 18th 2022 that Jared Hess is now the film’s director.
A new script presumably following a similar plot as the one discussed above is also in the works, co-written by Hubbel Palmer and Chris Bowman.
Roy Lee, Jon Berg, and Jon Spaihts are still producers and executive producers for the film.
But Mary Parent has also been named as another producer, with Cale Boyter joining as an executive producer.
Vu Bui and Lydia Winters’ direct involvement with the film was also confirmed.
Both have been named producers, representing Mojang and all that Minecraft stands for during the film’s production.
With a final release date still yet to be confirmed, fans can only hope that the latest production crew arrangement for the film will not change for fear of even more delays.