The Sims movie is still happening for some reason, and it's gonna be 'somewhere in-between both The Lego Movie and Barbie'

The Sims 4 - A Sim waves hello at the door, offering a fruitcake

(Image credit: Electronic Arts)

If you asked me to make a Sims movie—which would be a bold move—I'd probably be inclined to make it some kind of Truman Show-ish existential horror. A tale about someone who lives in Mr Rogers' Neighbourhood gradually coming to realise they actually live in Omelas or something.

I guess that, and only that, is why I'm not Margot Robbie, who is the one Hollywood has actually tapped to make a The Sims movie for some reason, and whose production company is set to draw inspiration for the project from the Barbie film and the Lego Movie (via The Direct).

That's per one of the film's producers, Roy Lee, who told The Direct that "Somewhere in-between both The Lego Movie and Barbie is where The Sims movie will be." Which, great. Let me read that a few more times to see if I can figure out what it means.

Nope, no luck. Okay, let me try to break it down for myself. I think we can take from this that The Sims movie will be something resembling a comedy, probably a family movie rather than a straightforward kids' film, and that its humour will be pretty universal but maybe dip into the more esoteric every now and then—you know, like the bit where Barbie chats about fascism. Also, maybe Ryan Gosling will sing a song. That'd be nice.

"It's sort of like, people were wondering, 'What could a Lego movie be?' until you saw it… and I'm producing with Margot Robbie. And [people] were probably wondering, 'What could a Barbie movie be?'"

Sims in various emotional states. — (Image credit: EA)

In other words, The Sims movie will remain mysterious and amorphous until you finally lay eyes on it, at which point all its mysteries will click into place. I think maybe Roy Lee and Margot Robbie aren't too sure what it will be just yet, beyond the broad strokes.

The Sims feels like a very weird choice to make a movie out of, but as our own Andy Chalk noted back when word of it first leaked, Hollywood has made successful films out of emojis and, well, Barbie—which isn't exactly a plot-heavy franchise. Perhaps The Sims movie will actually be good. It surely can't be any worse than Borderlands.

One of Josh's first memories is of playing Quake 2 on the family computer when he was much too young to be doing that, and he's been irreparably game-brained ever since. His writing has been featured in Vice, Fanbyte, and the Financial Times. He'll play pretty much anything, and has written far too much on everything from visual novels to Assassin's Creed. His most profound loves are for CRPGs, immersive sims, and any game whose ambition outstrips its budget. He thinks you're all far too mean about Deus Ex: Invisible War.

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