The Division Movie Adaptation, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, is to begin filming in 2022

According to the director, filming on Jake Gyllenhaal’s upcoming film The Division, which is based on the popular video game franchise of the same name, will begin next year.

The original game, Tom Clancy’s The Division, is an online-based shooter set in a near-future New York City devastation caused by a viral pandemic. The game follows operatives from the Strategic Homeland Division who are tasked with saving Manhattan and combating an increase in criminal activity.

The game, which was released by Ubisoft in 2016, was the company’s best-selling new game debut, grossing $33 million globally, prompting a sequel in 2019.

filming in 2022

A live-action film adaptation was announced not long after the game’s debut, with Gyllenhaal attached to the star. Jessica Chastain will join the actor in bringing a script created by former Agents Of Shield writer Rafe Jenkins to reality. Since it was initially announced in 2016, the picture has had a rocky road, with original director Stephen Gaghan departing in 2018 and his replacement, John Wick, and Atomic Blonde filmmaker David Leitch, departing earlier this year due to schedule difficulties.

Now, Rawson Marshall Thurber, the director of Dwayne Johnson’s most recent Netflix action comedy Red Notice, has revived the project, with Netflix set to distribute the finished piece as well.

The director told GamesRadar that he is “in the middle of the next rewrite” and that stars Gyllenhaal and Chastain are “fired up and ready to go,” confirming their commitment. Thurber went on to say that “with any luck, we’ll film in 2022,” suggesting that the filmmaker is eager to begin filming as soon as possible. The Division is finally scheduled to begin production after a five-year development period and three different directors.

“I’m so thrilled about it, […] We’re in the middle of the latest rewrite and I think we’re going to start shooting [next year]. It’s my next movie, Jake and Jessica are fired up and ready to go. With any luck, we’ll film in 2022 and I’m incredibly excited.”

Those looking forward to the Division movie should find this news promising. Since Thurber’s arrival in February, things have been fairly quiet on this front, although the director’s most recent comments suggest that work on the adaptation is continuing.

Nothing has been verified as of yet, but the creative team appears to have a strategy in place. The exact shooting dates will most likely be determined by how the schedules work out.