Thanks to the landmark success of Monster Hunter World (our review), 2018 has already been a banner year for Capcom’s prestigious RPG series. And now, thanks to the combined efforts of Screen Gems and Resident Evil writer-director Paul W.S. Anderson, Monster Hunter is bound for the big screen.

The $60 million production is expected to begin shooting in South Africa next month, with RE veteran and Anderson’s wife Milla Jovovich taking point as Artemis, a mystery character (hunter?) whose journey has been labelled a big secret by the Powers That Be. Ditto for Monster Hunter‘s underlying plot, though we now have official confirmation of Jovovich’s co-stars: Ron Perlman and hip-hop artist T.I. Harris.

The Hollywood Reporter has the scoop, revealing that Perlman (Hellboy, Pacific Rim) has clinched the role of Admiral, the grizzled leader of a monster hunting group while T.I. Harris, still hot off his role in Ant-Man, is expected to take point as a sniper known only as Link.

Perlman is undoubtedly a huge coup for Paul W.S. Anderson and the Monster Hunter movie, overall, and we fully expect him to bring a sense of gravitas (and charm!) to the film’s Admiral. Couple this with Anderson’s extensive experience in the arena of video game movies and it’s clear that, at least at this early stage in development, Capcom’s live-action blockbuster is chock-full of potential – the question, really, is whether this potential translates into a competent and compelling movie. Something that’s escaped this subgenre for far too long.

Others have tried (and failed) to balance the fundamentals of a good movie with the essence of their source material – think Tomb Raider et. al – so, for now, Monster Hunter only has our morbid curiosity.

With an October 2018 production start on the cards, look for the long-gestating Monster Hunter to take flight during the latter stages of 2019.