“I have only ever thought of Death Stranding as a game”: Hideo Kojima has written a movie, but “I don’t have the time to direct it, so I won’t”

Hideo Kojima’s love of film is legendary, and the lengthy cutscenes in his games have led us all to wonder when – not if – he’s going to make the jump to Hollywood. But it seems that shift isn’t quite so inevitable in Kojima’s own mind. Not only is he not directing the Death Stranding movie, he’s so wrapped up in game production that he doesn’t even have time to pursue his own original movie concept.

“I have only ever thought of Death Stranding as a game,” Kojima tells Variety in a new interview. “People tell me it feels like a movie, but I made it as a game – the direction, the settings, the story. So, I don’t intend to look back at it and try to see it from a movie perspective. Those works are my babies, and I love movies, so I want it to be something that movie fans will really enjoy! I’ll supervise the plot and help them make it, but I won’t direct it. I can’t right now with three on-going projects!”

He adds that “there are several Death Stranding adaptation projects currently underway, but there is a different story I’ve written that’s intended for a movie. But I don’t have the time to direct it, so I won’t.”

Kojima made it clear back in 2023 that he wasn’t directing the Death Stranding film – and that was before we even knew he was partnering with A24 on the project. As for who actually will direct the film, he says his collaboration with Hollywood figures like Jordan Peele isn’t necessarily a clue, as he intends to collaborate with other creators on a much broader range of media as Kojima Productions moves into its “third phase.”

“It’s not only Jordan,” Kojima explains, “but I have a close relationship with directors like Guillermo del Toro, Nicolas Winding Refn, and George Miller – who appear in Death Stranding – and we always talk about doing something together. Right now, movies and games are two different branches, but pretty soon, it will be very similar. So, it’s not about making a video game out of Nope or having Jordan adapt Death Stranding into a film. It’s about making something new together.”

Kojima isn’t saying he’ll never direct a movie himself, though. “Maybe once I’m in the third phase after Physint, I might be directing a movie, or Kojima Productions maybe making a movie. Who knows!”

For now, you can check out everything we know about Death Stranding 2 or dig into our guide to all the upcoming video game movies.