Mojang and Warner Bros. Pictures have finally found their director for the Minecraft motion picture. Rob McElhenney — best known for co-creating and starring in the FX/FXX comedy, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia — has been announced by Mojang CCO, Vu Bui, on the developer’s website.
Warner Bros. acquired the rights to the Minecraft movie following the rampant success of last year’s The LEGO Movie with the same producer, Roy Lee, also producing this film. When originally picked up, the Minecraft movie was going to be a live-action take on the popular open-world indie sandbox game.
For those who do not know much about Rob McElhenney, here is a bit of background:
McElhenney was an actor in Los Angeles who was so tired of auditions that he, along with friends Glenn Howerton and Charlie Day, began writing and shooting what would eventually become the basis for It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Based on the footage they shot, they pitched the show to a number of networks and sold it to FX. More recently, he closed a deal with Legendary Pictures to make his feature screenwriting and directorial debut with family action film, Figment. He sold the concept to Legendary in much the same way he did with It’s Always Sunny: by shooting a 4-minute test reel and giving a 20-minute pitch.
Hey @Mojang let's do something strange and wonderful.
— Rob McElhenney (@RMcElhenney) July 21, 2015
No word on whether McElhenney will also be writing the Minecraft movie, but you could bet that he will also be handling screenwriting duties in some capacity. And considering the talent behind The LEGO Movie and Rob McElhenney at the helm, we can be sure it will be pretty hilarious. Still, much of this deal is still unknown, so we will keep you updated as we know more.
In the meantime, you can play Minecraft on PC, Mac, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, PS Vita, and the Pocket Edition on your iOS and Android devices.
