\"Making games is 10 times harder than making films.\" Danny Bilson, Chair of USC Games, has spent 50 years doing both: The Rocketeer, The Flash and Da 5 Bloods on screen, then The Sims, Medal of Honor, Harry Potter and James Bond at EA, and Saints Row and Darksiders at THQ. He explains what makes games the harder craft, why he quit EA mid-project over a Bond game that broke his heart, and why the studios behind his biggest successes never invited him back.
Danny co-wrote The Rocketeer with Paul De Meo and ran The Flash for CBS in 1990, then spent the 2000s running franchises at EA before becoming EVP Core Games at THQ. He co-wrote Da 5 Bloods for Spike Lee. Today he chairs USC Games, teaches the next generation of writers, and is writing an unannounced AAA extraction shooter.
In this conversation:
Watch the video version with full chapters on YouTube: https://youtu.be/S9X6Ct97UIk
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 — Introduction
3:20 — Why sequels dominate film and games
5:17 — \"They don't want the old voice\": locked out of The Flash and The Rocketeer
12:40 — How The Rocketeer got made: Jim Cameron's tip and Dave Stevens' free option
25:23 — Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and the opening weekend that killed it
28:47 — A card dropped on a script: EA, fixing The Sims and the franchise years
36:18 — Quitting EA over the Goldfinger vs Dr. No game
41:23 — Demoing the first Harry Potter game to the author in black and white
46:53 — Nightfire, Judi Dench and Viggo's Elvish dictionary
56:14 — The THQ years: Saints Row III, uDraw and executives who don't play
1:01:23 — The unannounced AAA extraction shooter and the two things every story needs
1:07:42 — Da 5 Bloods: Oliver Stone, Spike Lee and the Milius seminar
1:28:22 — Write the movie you want to see the most
Connect:
Danny Bilson LinkedIn | USC School of Cinematic Arts
Pete Bell: LinkedIn | Instagram
Purpose Made is hosted by Pete Bell, gaming industry consultant and interviewer of the people who shaped the games, films, and culture you love.
Know someone who's shaped games, film, or culture? Pitch a guest: https://purposemadepodcast.co.uk/guest-pitch
The Daily Digest, daily intelligence for the people shaping the future of franchises: https://www.thedailydigest.co.uk/
Topics Covered: Danny Bilson, The Rocketeer, franchise IP, game development, screenwriting, EA, THQ, Da 5 Bloods and more.
This podcast was produced by Purpose Made.
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