Markiplier To Direct And Star In Adaptation Of Indie Game Iron Lung

YouTube creator Markiplier is both directing and starring in his first movie, the details of which he has kept a closely guarded secret until now. A teaser trailer from Markiplier’s channel revealed the movie will be a live-action adaptation of the indie horror game Iron Lung by David Szymanski. Szymanski himself has confirmed through Twitter that he is assisting with production, writing the script, and even filling a small cameo role. Unlike Markiplier’s previous projects, which were released on YouTube, fans will need to take a trip to the theaters if they want to catch the Iron Lung adaptation on opening day.

Iron Lung is a horror game with minimalist gameplay, taking place entirely from within the confines of a burner submarine known as the Iron Lung that has been welded shut in order to brave the depths of an anomalous blood moon. The player takes on the role of a convict sent to the moon in a desperate bid for resources following an event known as “The Quiet Rapture”, in which every star, and habitable resource-laden planet, suddenly vanished. The only view of the depths outside the submarine is given through low-resolution photos taken using the sub’s instruments, creating a sense of tight claustrophobia within the sub as players navigate and try to piece together their surroundings.

Iron Lung
This is where you spend the entire game, shuffling up and down the confines of a rusty submarine.

The movie adaptation of Iron Lung has the potential to bring the game’s tense atmosphere and unique gameplay to life. It remains to be seen whether the movie maintains the minimalist design of the original game or goes an entirely different route. The teaser trailer doesn’t give us much: we start off with a view of the submarine interior from the original game, which slowly rotates out of frame to reveal the same location recreated in notably higher quality and increased fidelity for the movie. Part of what made Iron Lung scary was the fact that you struggled to make out what you were seeing due to the low fidelity. Putting the game side by side with the submarine set from the movie trailer, it seems they’ve opted to make up for the higher fidelity by using darker lighting.

Movie adaptations of video games have a bit of a sour history, generally not doing very well due to poor decisions by people from outside the industry, but what seemed to be a curse was flipped on its head by recent titles like The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) and Sonic the Hedgehog (2020). Whether Iron Lung will be able to break the curse as well remains to be seen, but Markiplier does have a track record of successful creative projects, and he is coming hot off the coattails of the success of his interactive series In Space with Markiplier.

Iron Lung Set
The submarine from the movie might look less scary on the inside, but the real horror lurks outside.

Given that the Iron Lung movie adaptation is entirely self-funded and includes the involvement of the game’s original creator, there should be little worry that outside influence will affect the movie’s production. Markiplier has even gone on record to say this is his effort to show the film industry that he doesn’t need them in order to make a successful movie, so whatever creative decisions are made will be entirely up to Markiplier and his team. Whether that independence will translate to a quality movie remains to be seen, especially with as little information as we have at this time. Shooting for the movie should be wrapping up in the next few weeks, barring any delays, but a release date has yet to be announced.

Are you looking forward to Markiplier’s Iron Lung adaptation? Let us know in the comments below, and keep your eyes on GameLuster for more gaming news.