The creator of one of the world’s most famous and best-selling video games has signed a development deal with Fox Broadcasting. Will Wright, who created The Sims, has finalized a first look deal with Fox to develop new projects. Fox execs say Wright has free reign to develop whatever he wants–sit com, reality show or anything in between. "This deal isn’t about taking a game and turning it into a TV show," Fox exec vice president of alternative programming and specials Mike Darnell says. "It’s about creating new entertainment franchises." Franchises are what seemingly every entertainment company is after these days, as they can present long-term opportunities to exploit the property across a wide-range of media–free TV, pay TV, licensed products and so on.
Currently, Wright is developing a host of new vid games including The Sims 2 and Sim City: Rush Hour (PC only), The Sims Bustin’ Loose for Xbox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube. The game that put Wright on the map, The Sims, may also be headed for the small screen. After a deal with Columbia TriStar TV to produce a live-action version of the game fell through recently, Wright as reportedly been looking or other partners for the project. The Sims has sold a reported 25 million units in the past three years.
