Netflix, Sega Team on Crazy Taxi Film, Sonic Series — SkimNews
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- Netflix and Sega announced a multititle deal, with the first project being a 'Crazy Taxi' feature-film adaptation written by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand — the duo behind the 2025 'Naked Gun' reboot — and produced by Original Film's Neal H. Moritz and Toby Ascher alongside Sega's Toru Nakahara.
- The new animated 'Sonic the Hedgehog' series targets upper pre-school audiences and is in development with Carlos Stevens and Nakahara, joining three seasons of Netflix's 'Sonic Prime' already streaming exclusively on the platform.
- The 'Stranger Than Heaven' film adapts RGG Studio's upcoming action-adventure game (set for January 2027 release), set in early 20th century Japan following a foreigner who claws his way from destitute stranger to yakuza to entertainment tycoon — RGG Studio developed the 'Like a Dragon: Yakuza' series, which has sold over 30 million copies.
- 'Crazy Taxi' debuted in arcades in 1999, with the latest franchise entry, 'Crazy Taxi: World Tour,' scheduled for release in 2027.
- The Sega titles will join Netflix's broader video game adaptation slate, which includes a live-action 'Assassin's Creed' series, a 'Gears of War' film, animated series based on 'Minecraft,' 'Magic: The Gathering' and 'Clash of Clans,' second seasons of 'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners' and 'Splinter Cell: Deathwatch,' and the third and final season of 'Devil May Cry.'
Why it matters: Netflix now has game adaptations covering preschool animation, broad comedy, and prestige action-drama — a demographic spread that turns three different eras of Sega's catalog into year-round programming. Sega simultaneously locks in film and TV distribution for properties spanning a 1999 arcade classic, a modern franchise, and a 2027 launch title.
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