The film adaptation of the Assassin's Creed video game franchise has moved forward largely in fits and starts. After sitting in limbo for almost a year, the adaptation shot forward with the announcement that Michael Fassbender would both produce and star in the movie. When at last a deal was hammered out with New Regency to help produce the film, it seemed as if the production was about to start moving forward relatively quickly.

Now, after some months of relative silence on the project, Assassin's Creed has received another shot to the arm. Those interested the state of the film's screenplay have something to chew on, as British playwright Michael Lesslie has been announced as the project's scriptwriter.

The Hollywood Reporter has shared that the BAFTA-nominated Michael Lesslie has been tapped to write the script for Assassin's Creed. Lesslie's script will be the first created for the Ubisoft Motion Pictures film.

While Lesslie is a more-or-less unknown quantity in mainstream film, he is considered a promising young talent in British theater. His play Prince of Denmark received plaudits last year when it was performed in England's National Theater. Lesslie has written no produced feature films. However, he has apparently penned scripts for several short subjects that have seen production – including the 2012 film Skirt, which was directed by Amanda Boyle (Skins).

Adapting the labyrinthine story of the Assassin's Creed games will be no easy task. Despite being heavily narrative-oriented, their often complicated science fiction storylines could be too dense (and oftentimes ridiculously over-the-top) to work as a straight conversion to film. All this said, the tale of bartender Desmond Miles' technological journey through his ancestors' blood-soaked lives is filled with grand spectacle, memorable characters, and moments of taut suspense. Of the three Ubisoft video game properties currently being groomed for movie adaptations (see also Ghost Recon and Splinter Cell), Assassin's Creed is easily the best suited for a run on the silver screen.

Thus, assigning the script duties for a major franchise to a largely untested screenwriter is a fascinating gamble. This is especially true of a writer who has (so far) made his bones on the stage. The transition from theater to cinema has stymied more than a few aspiring screenwriters. Fortunately for those nervous about the Assassin's Creed movie, Lesslie does indeed have some serious cred in England, and his relative youth makes him a lock for Creed's target demographic. Hopefully, Lesslie will bring the same kind of enthusiasm for the subject material that has made Michael Fassbender such a strong proponent for what was once a languishing adaptation.

Though Assassin's Creed has no concrete release date, we at Screen Rant will sound the alarm whenever we hear anything new about this possible science fiction epic.

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Source: The Hollywood Reporter