‘Tecmo Bowl’ Movie in the Works From Tongal

Tongal, a creator-driven studio and platform that worked on Pharrell Williams’ “Piece by Piece” movie, is developing a feature film based on Koei Tecmo’s classic ’80s football video game “Tecmo Bowl.”

The studio, which has developed content for Netflix, The Lego Group, Pokemon, NBCUniversal and more brands, says it will collaborate with its community of over 160,000 creatives to “reimagine the beloved classic as a movie” that will “combine live action with animated gameplay sequences inspired by the original ‘Tecmo Bowl.’”

First released in arcades in 1987 and later on the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1989, “Tecmo Bowl” introduced many gamers to virtual football for the first time through gameplay with digital versions of the era’s biggest players, including Bo Jackson, Joe Montana and Lawrence Taylor.

Per Tongal, the “Tecmo Bowl” movie “will be developed with Tongal’s creator community, who will contribute and execute original ideas to reimagine the legendary football game’s IP for a new era. By blending the game’s distinct original animation sequences with live production, the film will capture Tecmo Bowl’s nostalgic charm with a fresh, modern approach fueled by creators around the world.”

Tongal’s first open project tied to the film invites animators to pitch their take of how to transform the game’s original characters from their 8-bit origins into 3D, with the the first character being former Raiders star Bo Jackson. The link to submit is now open on Tongal’s website.

This continues Tongal’s expansion into original content, with additional titles set to roll out over the next year. Building on its recent collaboration with Focus Features, the LEGO Group, Tremolo Productions, and Pharrell Williams’ production company I Am Other on the animated biopic Piece by Piece, directed by Oscar-winner Morgan Neville, Tongal is now focused on securing rights to build a slate of premium film, series, and digital properties, teaming with top creative talent who share its vision for reinventing how films and content are made.

“I grew up playing ‘Tecmo Bowl’ with my friends, as did so many kids of the 90s, and I know this is going to resonate with the fans and their families,” Tongal CEO and co-founder James DeJulio said. “We’re bringing together our creator community and cutting-edge creator platform to reinvent how features are developed and produced. Just as we did with Piece by Piece, this is an opportunity to innovate and build a new model for storytelling — one where beloved IP is supercharged by the talent and ideas of independent creators around the world.”