The Monopoly Movie: From Board Game to Big Screen

Monopoly: From Board Game to Movie

The classic economics-based board game by Parker Brothers and later Hasbro, Monopoly pits players against one another in a quest for financial domination as they purchase properties and charge rents from their opponents. Often cited as one of the most popular board games of all time, Monopoly has become a bona fide pop culture phenomenon since its inception in the 1930s.

Monopoly Man posing in Monopoly cover

Though it is a challenging party game, and only holds a paltry 4.2 rating on Board Game Geek, Monopoly and its adjacent imagery are instantly recognizable. Even Monopoly's mascot character, Rich Uncle Pennybags, is synonymous with the game in a way that few board games have been able to achieve. Naturally, Monopoly has branched out into other forms of media and has improved its standing through video games and collectibles.

Ruthless Monopoly's Secret History

While a Monopoly movie has yet to surface, the success of toy-based movies has inspired Hollywood to take another stab at bringing the game to life.

Adrienne King as Alice Playing Strip Monopoly in Friday the 13th

The Monopoly Movie Latest News

Though the project was seemingly dead in the water years ago, the latest news sees Lionsgate confirm that a Monopoly movie is still in the works. Undoubtedly inspired by Greta Gerwig's box-office smashing Barbie, Lionsgate has made the surprising announcement that their long-gestating Monopoly project is still in development after years of silence. The project has been given a lift by Lionsgate's pending acquisition of the global content platform eOne from Hasbro, which will give the studio access to thousands of movies and TV shows as well as the Monopoly intellectual property.

The Monopoly movie has been a long time coming, and the first updates about the potential film date back as far as 2011 with legendary director Ridley Scott attached to the project. While that first incarnation was scrapped, a 2015 version nearly went into production before it too was abandoned in the wake of the failed board game movie craze of the early 2010s. Finally, a 2019 adaptation was announced by Lionsgate with Kevin Hart set to star, and Tim Story tapped to direct. It is unclear if the current iteration is the same as the 2019 version, but both are from Lionsgate.

Who Is Making The Monopoly Movie?

The only thing confirmed about the Monopoly movie is that Lionsgate will produce the long-gestating board game adaptation. The studio has been attached since 2019, and with its acquisition of eOne, it will no longer need to license Monopoly from Hasbro. Kevin Hart was announced to star in the film back in 2019, but the latest developments made no mention of the comedic actor. Additionally, Tim Story (Ride Along) was assigned directing duties when Lionsgate first came on board, but it isn't clear if he will still direct.