System Shock TV Series: Mortal Kombat’s Greg Russo heads up another video game adaptation

Back in October, Night Dive Studios announced that they are teaming with Binge, a gaming entertainment streaming platform, to make a live-action TV series based on the 1994 first-person shooter video game System Shock. Now they have found the person they want to bring the story to the screen – and it’s someone who has video game adaptation experience. The System Shock series is set to be written and directed by Greg Russo, the writer of last year’s Mortal Kombat movie.

Russo did not direct Mortal Kombat. That was the feature directorial debut of Simon McQuoid. Russo will be making his own directoral debut with System Shock.

Deadline offered the reminder that the original System Shock game

plunges players into Citadel Station in the year 2072, where an unnamed hacker wakes from a coma only to be confronted by murderous robots, killer cyborgs, malicious mutants, and a malevolent AI named SHODAN that seeks to control Earth.

Binge’s Chief Content Officer Allan Ungar is producing the TV series, with Night Dive’s Stephen Kick and Larry Kuperman serving as executive producers alongside Russo.

When this project was first announced, Kick provided the following statement:

I’ve always believed that a live action adaptation of System Shock would be the perfect medium to retell the harrowing story of Citadel station and its rogue AI that subjects the crew to unimaginable horror. We’re very excited to see the talented team at Binge bring System Shock to life in horrifyingly real and new ways.”

Russo had this to say about being hired to write and direct the show:

I’m honored to have the opportunity to work alongside the fantastic team at Binge and Nightdive Studios to bring the iconic System Shock franchise to life. I’ve been waiting for the right opportunity to make my directorial debut, and I finally found it.”

Russo has also written adaptations of the video games Space Invaders (for New Line and Warner Bros.) and Saints Row (for director F. Gary Gray). There’s no word on when or if those projects will be going into production.

We’ll keep you updated on System Shock as it continues to move forward.