Starbreeze Entertainment, in partnership with Vice Studios, has struck a deal with Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson's G-Unit Film and Television to executive produce a screen adaptation of Payday, the studio's co-op bank-robbing game franchise. The announcement did not specify whether the project will take the form of a television series or a film. Starbreeze and Vice had previously said, in a deal announced in March, that they intended to "adapt Payday for audiences beyond games, across screen and other formats," and the new announcement uses similarly broad language.
Coverage of the news varies slightly on format: one report describes the project specifically as a TV series, while also noting that no details have been given on when it might air or where. Another account states plainly that the medium has not been confirmed, leaving it unclear whether Payday is headed to television, film, or both.
In a statement, Jackson said, "G-Unit Film and TV has built cinematic crime stories that connect with audiences around the world. Teaming up with Starbreeze and Vice Studios and bringing the world of Payday to the screen gives us the chance to build something big, a high-energy franchise that pushes the heist genre forward." Starbreeze CEO Adolf Kristjansson added, "Payday has always been about the fantasy of getting away with it. Curtis and G-Unit don't do subtle, and neither do we. This is not about playing it safe; it's about doing the franchise justice with people who are as immersed in the world as we are."
Jackson's G-Unit Film & TV has previously produced the Power franchise of crime dramas for Starz, a series in which Jackson has also appeared as one of the principal characters. His music catalog includes the albums Get Rich or Die Tryin' and The Massacre.
It remains unclear how this new deal relates to a 2023 agreement Starbreeze made with production company Stockholm Syndrome to develop a Payday story for television or film, since that earlier deal was not mentioned in the new announcement. The Payday screen adaptation comes amid a broader push to expand the franchise beyond its base games, following the rocky 2023 launch of Payday 3 and ahead of the planned release of a VR title, Payday Aces High, later this year. The news also arrived alongside a separate announcement of a Payday crossover with Fortnite.