Sony Pictures has recently unveiled "Until Dawn," a film that loosely adapts the horror adventure of the Supermassive Games title. However, the movie is facing criticism for failing to acknowledge the writers of the original 2015 video game.
Sony Overlooks Until Dawn Game Writers in Film Credits
According to Eurogamer, the film credits make no mention of the actual creators of the original "Until Dawn" video game. It simply references the game by stating it’s “based on the Sony game.” This has sparked a reaction from former PlayStation Narrative Director, Kim MacAskill. They expressed their thoughts on this oversight and have initiated a petition calling for proper acknowledgment of the game’s creators, which has gathered 243 signatures so far.
"As someone who previously worked at Sony Interactive Entertainment, I was plainly informed that the intellectual property I developed would never be credited to me as an employee—no royalties, no control, no ownership, no recognition," MacAskill shared. "It’s frustrating to see a difference in how Neil Druckmann is treated compared to others within the company."
MacAskill continued, "After departing ‘Until Dawn,’ I noticed the film director and writers were credited, yet it ignored the pivotal game developers behind this iconic creation. Instead, you label it merely as ‘based on the Sony game.’"
"Why should creators of intellectual property continue to work under these conditions? Even in film and TV, notorious for their challenges, there’s still an understanding of the importance of giving credit where it’s due."
In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Larry Fessenden and Graham Reznick, the original writers of the game, expressed their disappointment at not being credited. "I didn’t have any expectations, but it would have been nice if someone thought to include our names, even during the end credits," Fessenden remarked. "There’s no courtesy left in show business."
