Hayter discusses MGS film, Kojima creative differences
by Majed Athab 
{ Jul 5th 2008 at 10:30PM }
It seems that David Hayter really wants to pen the script to the Metal Gear Solid movie. He has been recently trying to get fans of the series behind his banner by asking them to email Sony and make it happen. Now, over at Anime Expo in Los Angeles, Hayter chats things up with 1Up, taking time to talk more about his vision for Solid Snake's cinema debut and even divulging about a bit of frustration with Hideo Kojima's over-the-top direction."Kojima and I have different styles," said Hayter. "But I've certainly learned things from him, especially about ambiguity and telling a story without giving all the answers." While he can appreciate Kojima's work, there are quite a lot of areas where Hayter just couldn't agree with what was going on with Snake. In particular, he refers to Snake's suicide tease in previous MGS4 trailers: "I didn't buy it at all." He believes that Snake, with all his years, shouldn't have to hesitate. "If he knows it's time, then it's time."
Another folly in his eyes was a fan favorite scene from MGS1. "It's a delicate thing to discuss love blooming on the battlefield with Otacon," he said. Another one was the alternate ending with Otacon: "It felt like it was written to be romantic. It was just humiliating." So what does Dave have in mind for MGS: The Movie? He'll obviously avoid doing any of the above nitpickings. With that in mind, it would be interesting to see where he would go with the film.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Arsonism @ Jul 5th 2008 10:37PM
I know it is a Metal Gear Solid movie, but I think it would be cool if they took a story line from Metal Gear on NES and worked on it. Just a thought though.
tristan88 @ Jul 5th 2008 10:42PM
in that picture, damn he needs a haircut. about the movie. I personally dont think there should be one.what makes the games great is hideo kojima's way of telling it. would it be as good if it was any different? plus i dont like the concept of game based movies. they usually are just as bad as movie based games.
Lithgow @ Jul 5th 2008 10:55PM
I love Hayter and all, but seriously, he is so wrong on so many different levels.
He's KILLED many different people OTHER THAN HIMSELF. He's had plenty of experience killing other people, but this is the first time he's every come across the situation of killing himself. What makes you think he would just blow his own head off without a moment's hesitation?
And as if Hayter himself didn't understand the story, it's not like Snake wasn't still going to kill himself. Big Boss shot the Patriot, which scared the living **** out of Snake. That's the reason he didn't fire. Not that he just put down the gun. I don't know wtf Hayter is smoking.
Kojima is a freakin genius. Sorry Hayter, you have nothing on him in terms of ideas or anything else. Hayter was my last hope for a Metal Gear movie, now I can just say EFF off. You make a good voice for Snake, but your ideas are obviously terrible in regards to MGS. Have a good day.
Kamma @ Jul 6th 2008 4:29AM
I think Hayter makes alot of fair points. Kojima is a master of direction, but he certainly isn't a master writer. There were many moments in the MGS games that were just plain weird and didn't make alot of sense, these sorts of mistakes would become alot more obvious and silly in a film.
I think Kojima should let Hayter write it and just help with direction.
OneMale @ Jul 6th 2008 1:08AM
If you read that interview, it was actually Hideo Kojima that he was quoting, who said that Snake wouldn't hesitate if he was actually going to kill himself. He would just do it.
Drew @ Jul 5th 2008 10:55PM
Hmmm. I think I 'd watch an MGS movie if Hayter penned it. He's always seemed like he has a (pardon the pun) solid grip on Snake's character. It would be interesting to see where Snake would go under the guidance of someone else besides Kojima who is intimately tied to the character.
Brandon C @ Jul 5th 2008 11:19PM
This guy is the voice of Solid Snake, right? It seems a little bit...tacky for him to make these sorts of statements. My perception of this guy may be way off, but that's just what it seems like to me. It kinda seems like he feels entitled to the position of screenwriter for the movie based on his connection to the series.
And it's perfectly fine to not agree with or be frustrated by Kojima's style and story choices but you might not want to be so outspoken about how different your style is if you want to write the movie based on a series created by Kojima. Just a thought.
Drew @ Jul 6th 2008 1:17AM
If you haven't checked his IMDb credits, he's already got several scripts under his belt, including the first two X-Men movies. He's not just mouthing off without any talent or experience to back it up.
JayFight @ Jul 6th 2008 6:44AM
another point in hayters favor is the fact that he is as big a fan of the MGS series as we are he's actually played every one of them so i think he has a good grasp of the character of snake besides someone earlier said something about hayter was quoting kojima saying those things not that he was saying them him self (although i haven't read the interview myself)
btw i say they should have hayter play snake lol ....ok maybe not but he should definitely audition for the part and even if he doesn't get it then hopefully they'll get someone who'll sound similar because it'd be just weird if snake didn't sound like...well....snake
Dan @ Jul 6th 2008 11:56AM
As drew said. If they had to make a MGS movie then I'm glad hayter is taking part in the writing. With his experience and love for MGS series it will only fully benefit the movie altogether then getting some writer/director knowing hardly anything about the series or individual characters.
sonicyouth @ Jul 5th 2008 11:12PM
Remember the OPM Dreamcast for MGS: The Movie. Hugh Jackman as Snake! Was it Jon Voight as Ocelot?
CEEarl @ Jul 5th 2008 11:13PM
Speaking as a writer myself I thought that the writing behind the Metal Gear 4 game was brilliant. Yes, the cut scenes were a little long at times, but at the same time the intense cut scenes made them worth it. I thought the suicide tease was genius. As for the goofy jokes in the game, it was all tongue in cheek. I agree there is a difference between a game and a movie and a film should be taken more seriously throughout. Still, I think the tongue and cheek was more as a shout out to the fans. I think any fan would get it and myself only playing a few of the games, am a bigger fan than ever. Intense score, suspenseful scenes and a climatic ending. In short, I deal with a lot of Hollywood people and I think you should take note and learn something. What do you guys think?
Best,
Craig Everett Earl
Writer/Producer
Intrusion
www.myspace.com/intrusionmovie
Riseer @ Jul 5th 2008 11:40PM
LOL @ Lithgow, why rant? Japanese and american's are so diffrent when it's about a story.Hayter would americanize Mgs would make the story more ezer to jump into.You can't have a Mgs movie like the game,it won't apeal to everyone and sence a ton of people don't know mgs is and for that matter what the story is about.I would want him to remain faithful to the story but has to make it easer for the audience to understand what is going on.
kaede177 @ Jul 5th 2008 11:40PM
well he does seem to be a screenwriter....including xmen and such, I do see his points and kinda agree with him to a point. But i don't think a mgs movie needs to be made, kinda defeats the purpose of the game being so cinematic and movie-like.
Popfrogs @ Jul 6th 2008 12:03PM
Yeah, how would you even begin to distill 19 hours of cutscenes into a 2 hour movie? MGS belongs on consoles, if it hit theaters it'd get cut to shreds in the editing room. You'd have to make it a really short piece of Metal Gear lore, and even then, American audiences wouldn't pay attention to the intricate story.
Twinturbo120 @ Jul 6th 2008 12:14AM
there's so many shit movies out its not even funny. its like Atari but with movies.
John Manel @ Jul 6th 2008 12:08AM
if you want I'm to write the script, sign this:
http://www.petitiononline.com/hayter/petition.html
Zombie Huggles @ Jul 6th 2008 12:29AM
I think he's a little mistaken on the themes. I agree...uh someone who posted before me. Snake isn't exactly the kind of guy that wants to kill himself. His whole life, he's been trying to survive. The idea of offing himself was more to save the world from an epidemic...but there's still doubt. He's not Jesus, and even Jesus is said to have had doubts. He's a westerner...we don't kill ourselves unless we get really drunk, break up with a girlfriend, and listen to depressing music...or think we can go live with aliens.
And love blooming on the battlefield, it's not a about whether it should happen, but how. A "good" writer would consider how they can present this interesting concept while not going cheesy. I think he should stop trying to change the story, and consider how to make it work.
Roto13 @ Jul 6th 2008 12:31AM
I totally agree with the whole "Can love bloom on the battlefield?" and riding into the sunset with Otacon thing. That was... that was weird.
b-way @ Jul 6th 2008 7:59AM
The "love bloom on a battlefield thing" worked much better in the MGS1 Bande Dessine digital comic.
Nachkebia @ Jul 6th 2008 8:17AM
Person who has anything to do with x-man should not even come close to 100 kilometers to Kojima, it is dangerous for gaming and cinematography scene :)
Forelli_Boy @ Jul 7th 2008 5:28AM
Better than Uwe Boll, I say.
Matt @ Jul 6th 2008 10:18AM
Well, based on this article, I think Hayter would make me like MGS in movie form more than Kojima himself. I kind of agree on a few points that Kojima can be TOO over the top at times. Both points about the suicide and the Otacon ending are things I personally agree with, actually.
If this article is accurate, I think I'd LOVE to see what Hayter could do with the movie script. Additionally, if Kojima's not going to be working on further Metal Gear games...perhaps any future games could be penned to some extent by him? Just a thought though...
pixlz @ Jul 6th 2008 1:18PM
as far as i'm concerned, this guy penned the majority of the first two X-Men movies which were generally crap in the writing/story department when compared to the comics or cartoon. seriously.
if Watchmen is good, maybe i'll give it a chance with him as a writer, but Hayter still has to *severely* prove himself.
freechain @ Jul 6th 2008 7:21PM
Movies based on games are always lame, especially if some fool like David Hayter is going to put his spin on the story. If a movie is to be made it should be 100% Hideo Kojima, nothing short, this game is his brain child, nobody else can tell his story. David Hayter will destory this story.
Michael K. @ Jul 6th 2008 7:32PM
I like Hayter and all, but he shouldn't argue with Kojima about MGS, Kojima IS metal gear. He can have his own opinions but he should follow Kojima's ideas for the most part. Also his two criticisms are pretty weak, the Otacon ending did its job (it was the bad ending but it still wrapped up the story like it was supposed to), and I just blatantly disagree about the whole suicide criticism, he doesn't even take into mind the whole foxdie thing (I'm trying to avoid spoilers) and on top of that, Snake did have a hard life. It doesn't matter much though, I think Hayter should do the writing since he has a lot of experience with the MGS story, but Kojima should approve it before anything is finalized.
Gemini Ace @ Jul 7th 2008 8:00AM
Nice hair.
Saeadeb @ Jul 7th 2008 9:10AM
He needs to shut up and talk.
koehler83 @ Jul 7th 2008 10:14AM
This is a glaring oversight on Hayter's part. Canonically, Snake is NOT a killer, he is a soldier. He spends tireless efforts in the preservation of life, even that of his enemies. By the end of every Metal Gear game, not a life is lost at the hands of Snake himself.
deafwing @ Jul 7th 2008 3:59PM
for some reason, the movie just sounds like a bad idea. I love DH and all as a voice for Snake ... but a movie ... it just sounds like one of those games that need to stay as a game.