Netflix’s Devil May Cry and Castlevania animated adaptations show-runner Adi Shankar is taking the helm on a new Duke Nukem project after his recent screen rights acquisition from Gearbox Software. During a recent interview, Shankar seemed to indicate that even though Devil May Cry Season 2 is his current focus, this next project focused on the beloved over-the-top goofball action star may already be underway.
“I’m being approached with different IPs and companies that want to work with me,” Shankar said. “I bought the rights to Duke Nukem. Not the gaming rights, but I bought it from Gearbox.”
If you grew up in the ’90s and early 2000’s or have an affinity for retro games and classic video game heroes, then it’s likely you’ve heard of Duke Nukem. With its first release back in 1991 and its most recent title Duke Nukem Forever releasing to heavy criticism in 2011, the hilarious, gorey, action-packed FPS series experienced a lot of evolution during its tenure in the annals of gaming history.
The franchise first gained major popularity with the 1996 release of Duke Nukem 3D, with many hailing it as something akin to Doom with a sense of humor. Over the next 15 years the franchise released many titles to console, PC, and even a few mobile spinoffs, each featuring the titular foul-mouthed fan of explosions. Unfortunately, after the Xbox 360 and PS3 critical failure of Duke Nukem Forever, the badass with a buzzcut hasn’t seen the light of day since, apart from a few easter eggs and dlc inclusions in games like Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition and Shadow Warrior 2.
My main concern with Shankar taking on the property is how he handled the adaptations of Castlevania and Devil May Cry. They weren’t bad, so much as they were not very accurate representations of the source material that the characters and worlds originated from. I will concede that Castlevania started off pretty strong with the tone and narrative crafting, but as the number of seasons increased, the creative license taken by the lead creative seemed to steer the story and its characters into relatively uncharted territory that muddied a lot of fans enjoyment of the property.
With that said, there is one major silver lining here, and that comes with the recognition of the effect that television and film adaptations have on the resurgence of a game series’ popularity. With games like Fallout, The Last of Us, The Witcher, and even Cyberpunk 2077 gaining many new fans as well as fans returning for a nostalgia hit as their interest in the property had been reawakened thanks to the adaptations bringing the titles to the forefront of their minds.
Even if a show or film is just plain bad (Here’s lookin’ at you EVERY Resident Evil movie and show apart from some of the animated films) it can still drive interest in the series, especially for returning fans who see the adaptation and think, “The games were way better than this; I’m gonna go play them again!”
I am hopeful for a quality representation of Duke Nukem, but with his dirty, vulgar, and commonly viewed as offensive and unacceptable language in the modern landscape, I fear that ol’ Duke may not get the proper treatment he deserves. However, whether the show is fantastic and accurate or not is mostly irrelevant, because it will still be in the cultural zeitgeist once more and that will undoubtedly lead to future games if companies see that there is money to be made off the mostly abandoned property. With Shankar himself describing his perfect vision for the Duke Nukem series as “It’s a middle finger to everybody,” I have a bit of confidence that this could turn out pretty cool.
“When Duke Nukem blew up, a bunch of people sat around trying to turn it into a brand, when it’s just a middle finger. Duke Nukem can’t be made by a corporation, because the moment a corporation makes Duke Nukem, it’s no longer Duke Nukem. I don’t intend on having anyone tell me what to do on this one.”
Whether or not the project will be another animated series or film, or perhaps even a live-action title remains to be seen, but it does seem that the production is currently being pieced together behind the scenes. I imagine that the reported 2022 Legendary Entertainment movie adaptation will likely never see the light of day, but maybe that’s for the best. I’m hopeful for this project and I’m truly optimistic that it will be handled with respect.
Are you excited for the return of the king? Would you prefer a series or film, animated or live action? Are you a fan of Shankar’s other shows? Let us know over on the Discord!
