Image: "Crazy Taxi: World Tour" (Sega)
On September 15, Netflix and Sega announced a new partnership to adapt multiple Sega game titles into visual content. As the first project, they plan to create a live-action comedy film of "Crazy Taxi," in addition to a new animated series for "Sonic the Hedgehog" and a live-action film for "STRANGER THAN HEAVEN."
"Crazy Taxi" is a driving game that first appeared in arcades in 1999. A completely new title in the series, "Crazy Taxi: World Tour," is also scheduled for release in 2027.
The script for the live-action film version will be handled by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, who worked on the 2025 version of "The Naked Gun." Neal H. Moritz and Toby Ascher, who worked on the "Sonic the Hedgehog" film series, along with Toru Nakahara of Sega, will serve as producers.
The "Sonic the Hedgehog" project is being developed as a new animated series aimed at preschool and early elementary school children. It will depict Sonic and his friends' heroic adventures. Netflix already streams all three seasons of "Sonic Prime."
"STRANGER THAN HEAVEN" is a new game being developed by RGG Studio, known for the "Like a Dragon" series. Without waiting for the game's release, the live-action film adaptation will begin development simultaneously.
Netflix is advancing the adaptation of game IPs into visual content, including titles like "Assassin's Creed." Sega, too, has expanded its visual content development for its own IPs, building on the success of the "Sonic the Hedgehog" films. Going forward, it seems likely that Sega will continuously adapt its numerous IPs into visual content.