20th Century Studios has enlisted Josh Cooley to adapt the survival horror video game "99 Nights in the Forest" for the big screen, Hollywood Buzz News has learned exclusively. Cooley, best known for directing "Toy Story 4" and the upcoming "Transformers One," will write the screenplay for the live-action feature, marking a sharp pivot for a filmmaker whose resume has been defined by animated family fare. The project is in early development at the studio, with no director or cast attached at this stage.
The game, which has built a devoted following since its release, drops players into a dense, unforgiving woodland where they must scavenge resources, fend off hostile creatures, and simply make it through night after night. Its appeal lies less in jump scares than in the slow crush of isolation and dwindling supplies - a tone that would seem to sit far from Cooley's previous work. That contrast is precisely what makes his hiring intriguing to industry observers.
A Genre Shift for a Pixar Veteran
Cooley spent years inside Pixar's story trust, contributing to "Inside Out" and "Up" before stepping into the director's chair for "Toy Story 4," which earned him an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. His next film, "Transformers One," is an animated prequel set on the Transformers' home planet. Moving from those projects to a live-action horror script is not the leap it might first appear, according to people familiar with the studio's thinking. Cooley's strength has always been building tension between characters who are trapped together by circumstance - a skill that translates directly to a survival narrative where a small group must rely on one another against an external threat.
20th Century Studios has been aggressive in mining video game properties in recent years, following the success of adaptations that proved audiences will turn out for faithful, atmospheric takes on interactive source material. The studio has not announced a release window, and it remains unclear whether the film will follow the game's plot closely or use its setting as a springboard for an original story.
What the Game Brings to the Screen
"99 Nights in the Forest" is structured around repetition and dread. Each in-game day forces players to venture further from camp for food and materials, while each night brings a fresh wave of danger. That loop - routine punctured by terror - has obvious cinematic potential, though it also presents a structural challenge. Films built on cyclical survival mechanics risk feeling episodic, and whoever eventually directs will need to find a way to escalate stakes rather than simply repeating them.
The game's visual language is another asset. Its forest is rendered as a place of oppressive beauty: thick canopies, flickering firelight, and shadows that seem to move on their own. A live-action adaptation could lean into practical effects and location shooting to capture that texture, a strategy that has served other horror productions well in an era when audiences have grown wary of obviously digital creatures.
Cooley is repped by CAA and managed by Industry Entertainment. Representatives for 20th Century Studios declined to comment beyond confirming the attachment.
The hiring signals that the studio views the project as more than a quick cash-in on a recognizable title. Bringing in a writer with Cooley's pedigree suggests an interest in character-driven suspense rather than a straightforward creature feature. Whether that ambition survives the development process is another matter - video game adaptations have a long history of losing their identity somewhere between the pitch and the screen.
For now, the project joins a growing slate of game-based films in various stages of production across the industry. Studios have grown more willing to take chances on titles with built-in fanbases, particularly in the horror space, where modest budgets and loyal audiences can produce outsized returns. "99 Nights in the Forest" fits that mold neatly: a property with a passionate following, a premise that lends itself to visceral filmmaking, and now a writer whose involvement alone will draw attention.
Hollywood Buzz News will continue to follow the project as it moves through development.
Source: Hollywood Reporter