Visceral: Dante as movie hero would not resonate well with film goers

Looks like a live-action movie of Dante's Inferno may not happen - or at least contain a Dante like that's seen in the game, according to Visceral's Jonathan Knight.

Speaking during a roundtable interview back in January, which we were a part of, Knight says the character of Dante is just "too unlikeable" and would not translate well onto the big screen.

“Our version of Dante is a dark, troubled character, he said (via That VideoGameBlog). "At the beginning of the game, he’s fairly unlikeable. He’s done a lot of bad things [and] there’s a lot about him to not like for sure. I think that’s something you could only do in a game.

“If our Dante was up on the big screen in a movie exactly as he is in the game, I’m not sure you would make that journey with him.

“He does have redeeming qualities, and he does truly love this woman [but] our goal was to basically make a character that seems like he has it coming to him in the beginning of the game, but by the end of the game you feel different about him.

"What’s cool about it is that he’s you, and you’re on the journey as a gamer so you can’t help but enjoy doing the things that he’s doing. But is he a role model? Probably not.”

During the same roundtable, participants were asked to send over follow-up questions, so we asked about the report that surfaced last March regarding Dan Harris currently penning the script for the film.

Visceral had no comment on the matter.

However, since Knight did describe Dante to VG247 as being "more nuanced" and "less one-dimensional" than most cut-and-dry Hollywood heroes, a character like Dante probably would not "go over too well" with film goers, he admitted.

So, if a movie is indeed in the works, it sounds like Dante will be a lot different than he was in the game.

Dante's Inferno is out now on PS3 and Xbox 360, and its Dark Forest DLC is due next month.

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