The long-anticipated cinematic journey for the iconic Magic: The Gathering card game is finally gathering significant steam. In a move that has excited fans worldwide, Legendary Entertainment and Hasbro have appointed Matt Johnson as the director for the upcoming Magic film, with screenwriters joining the project shortly thereafter in April 2025. Offering the first substantial update on the film’s progress in 2026, Johnson shared an encouraging outlook with MovieWeb.
“I’m still very much in the thick of it; this is definitely happening,” Johnson stated. “It’s the largest undertaking of my career to date, and I’m still a bit in awe that it’s come to fruition. As we speak, everything is moving at full throttle.”
This development follows a major partnership announcement between Hasbro and Legendary Entertainment in February 2025, which laid out ambitious plans to transform Magic: The Gathering into a sprawling live-action film and television franchise, kicking off with a feature film. Johnson had been a strong contender for the director’s chair, a rumour that has now been confirmed. Further bolstering the creative team, Legendary and Hasbro officially brought Noah Gardner and Aidan Fitzgerald on board to pen the script in June 2026.
While the Magic: The Gathering film has yet to receive a firm release date or a concrete production schedule, the creative gears are clearly turning. It remains to be seen whether Gardner and Fitzgerald have delivered their completed script.
Charting the Unseen Narrative: What Will the Magic: The Gathering Film Explore?
The exact plot of the Magic: The Gathering film remains shrouded in mystery. For over three decades, the game has woven intricate narratives through its numerous card sets. Early storylines delved into the saga of Urza, a formidable Planeswalker – individuals gifted with the ability to traverse the diverse realities of the Magic multiverse – and the heroic crew of the Weatherlight as they battled the mechanical menace of the Phyrexians, invaders from a foreign plane.
Subsequent sets shifted focus to the Gatewatch, a team akin to a superhero ensemble of Planeswalkers, tasked with safeguarding the multiverse from malevolent Planeswalkers, including the ancient dragon Nicol Bolas. More recent narratives have ingeniously merged these storylines, depicting brave Planeswalkers from across the multiverse confronting a new, resurgent Phyrexian threat.
However, the sheer immensity of the Magic: The Gathering multiverse offers Legendary and Hasbro a vast canvas. They possess the creative freedom to introduce entirely new characters, much like Paramount’s strategic approach with Dungeons & Dragons. The film could be anchored to a single world or encompass a grand tour of multiple planes within the multiverse. The narrative possibilities are virtually boundless, potentially even eclipsing the ambitious scale of the recently revealed adaptations of Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe.
Beyond the Silver Screen: Other Magic: The Gathering Adaptations
The live-action film is not the sole Magic: The Gathering adaptation currently in development. Netflix has been cultivating a long-gestating animated series, which received its first preview at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June 2025.
Initially conceived with Avengers directors Joe and Anthony Russo, the animated series underwent a development restart in 2024, with Terry Matalas, the acclaimed showrunner of Star Trek: Picard Season 3, now at the helm. It is currently unclear if this Netflix animated series will have any thematic or narrative connection to Legendary’s live-action film endeavours.
It’s worth noting that the film rights to Magic: The Gathering were initially acquired by 20th Century Fox back in 2014. However, the studio never managed to bring a feature film to fruition, and the project was ultimately shelved following Disney’s acquisition of the studio.
A Universe of Expansions and Collaborations
The Magic: The Gathering universe continues to expand, with its 106th expansion set, Lorwyn Eclipse, releasing in January. This set represents one of the increasingly rare instances where Magic‘s own original intellectual property is the focus. The game’s “Universes Beyond” initiative has increasingly incorporated popular external franchises, featuring collaborations with Spider-Man, The Lord of the Rings, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Dungeons & Dragons. Its next upcoming set is set to introduce characters from the beloved world of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
