37 years ago, Sega graced us with the arcade release of its ninja game Shinobi, which then became the quintessential ninja game franchise for the company. Fast forward to now, and we are getting a cinematic treatment of the black-slash-white clad ninja with limited shurikens, kick-ass moves, and self-sacrificing Mijin ninjutsu.

Universal Pictures is teaming up with Sega to make a movie based on the Shinobi license. The film will be directed by Sam Hargrave of Extraction fame, with a screenplay adapted by Ken Kobayashi. Here is a quick overview of the partnership and movie:

The Shinobi series first debuted in 1987 as an arcade game and primarily follows protagonist Joe Musashi as a modern-day ninja who confronts great evil. Crafted with a focus on epic and edgy action, the Shinobi franchise spans fourteen games, including spinoffs, and ports, with over five million copies sold worldwide. A new entry in the series was revealed in late 2023. More information about the new game will be revealed in the future.

Details are unknown since this is a fresh announcement, but this may tie in with the upcoming Shinobi game that Sega teased; the one that’s 2D, action-packed, and has lovely animated art done by who we can assume is Lizardcube. As for plot details, the film will most likely star main character Joe Musashi and may take inspiration from all the games. Like Revenge of Shinobi/Super Shinobi where Neo Zeed and a kidnapped lover is involved, Shadow Dancer where a dog enters the fray as a vicious partner and protector, and the PS2 Shinobi games where cursed swords that drain your lifeforce are involved. There’s a lot to cherry-pick here, and hopefully a good action movie can come out of it.

The question is whether we’ll see the trio of Spider-Man, Batman, and Godzilla in the mix? Old Sega Genesis Shinobi reference; go look it up!