House of Cards creator Beau Willimon is developing a TV series based on the board game Risk. Risk came out in 1957 when global conflict was extremely prevalent. The strategy game quickly became one of the most successful board games of all time. The board game is played on a map of the world where players start out with a certain amount of countries under their control and attempt to capture other players' territories.
Willimon is best known for creating the first-ever Netflix original series, House of Cards. The show follows Congressman Frank Underwood as he partners with his wife to take revenge on the people who wronged him throughout his political career and climb up the political ladder to President. The political drama ran for six seasons and its success paved the way for Netflix original hits Orange is the New Black, Stranger Things and The Crown.
THR confirmed that Willimon will join forces with Hasbro's television studio Entertainment One, or eOne, to create a scripted series based on the board game Risk. Willimon is also working alongside Jordan Tappis and his production company, Westward, on the series as a part of the multi-year TV deal they signed with eOne. President of global television at eOne, Michael Lombardo has full confidence in Willimon and Tappis, dubbing their "award-winning storytelling and imagination" as "the best in the business." Additionally, he notes that Willimon is a perfect fit for the project as a "brilliant producer, singular creator, and avid fan of Risk." Willimon and Tappis stated that they are just as eager about the project.
"All of us at Westward are thrilled to join forces with eOne to bring to life some of the most successful IP in the marketplace as well as partner on our extensive slate of scripted television shows. We’re excited to develop Risk as our first project together."
The series does not yet have a buyer but it is likely that will change as the production develops due to the star power behind it. Additionally, developing series is not a new venture for eOne. Even though eOne is a Canadian based company, it has had international success selling TV series like ABC's The Rookie, The CW's Burden of Truth and NBC's Nurses. While eOne has more experience with networks, Willimon's success with streaming giant Netflix rounds the project out, giving it a good chance of success with both networks and streaming platforms.
While developing the board game Risk into a scripted series is a unique concept, it is not the first time a board game been adapted into a TV series or movie. Candyland, Battleship and Clue have all been developed into movies. However, none of them performed particularly well. While a board game has yet to have a successful TV series or movie adaption, Willimon's Risk has a pretty good chance of defying the odds.
Source: THR