CD Projekt Confirms Live-Action Cyberpunk 2077 Movie Will Not Follow the Game's Plot

CD Projekt Red has finally broken its silence on the live-action Cyberpunk 2077 movie. The studio made it clear that it has no intention of delivering a direct 1:1 adaptation of the game, opting instead to craft a brand-new narrative set within the same universe.

"At this point, we can only say that we definitely don't want to make a film adaptation of the game," co-CEO Michał Nowakowski told Polish outlet PAP Biznes, as reported by GamesRadar. "We want to tell a story in the world of Cyberpunk, but it won't be a one-to-one translation of the game's story."

The Cyberpunk movie is being developed in collaboration with Paramount, which is now part of the Skydance umbrella following a recent merger. Lorenzo di Bonaventura, known for his work on the live-action Transformers films, is attached to produce.

It will be intriguing to see how far the film diverges from the game, which followed a freelance mercenary named V who implants a mysterious computer chip in their brain and becomes haunted by the digital ghost of Keanu Reeves' Johnny Silverhand. Personally, I'd love for them to revisit that era, bring Reeves back, and explore Silverhand's story before he was trapped in the chip.

Of course, the Cyberpunk universe—originally created by tabletop RPG designer Mike Pondsmith—is expansive enough to support a wide range of original stories. It's rich ground for exploring themes of identity, autonomy, and the self as a ship of Theseus, constantly modified and reprinted.

This approach mirrors what the company did with anime. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners felt like a faithful multimedia extension of the world CDPR built—featuring locations and characters from the game—while telling a fresh story with original characters in its dystopian, posthuman hellscape.

The Studio Trigger-led anime series returns to Netflix this month, with Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Season 2 premiering on October 20. For more insights, check out IGN's interview with the creators of Edgerunners.

CD Projekt also recently announced that work has officially begun on Project Hadar, its first game set in an original universe. Previously, the company had only worked within worlds created by others, with The Witcher based on novels and Cyberpunk based on a tabletop RPG.

In other CD Projekt news, The Witcher 3 just received a remaster for consoles and PC, giving the iconic RPG a visual overhaul. There were some issues with the new visuals, particularly heavy bloom in The Witcher 3 remaster, but CDPR addressed them swiftly. And of course, Cyberpunk 2 is in development, though it's likely years away.