Magic: The Gathering's First Movie Officially Gets Its Biggest Update Yet

Magic: The Gathering is one of the biggest names in collectible card games right now. The game, first introduced by Wizards of the Coast in 1993, has been a huge success in almost every realm it has ever ventured into, but it has struggled to get a screen adaptation out of the Graveyard. Now, however, the game's first big-screen adaptation has taken a big step forward, casting a Stranger Things star in its lead role.

Matt Johnson, the Canadian director who co-created Nirvanna The Band The Show and its big-screen spin-off, Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie, will handle directing duties on the film. It is an unusual choice for a high-fantasy franchise, but Johnson has been on a hot streak lately, with his Anthony Bourdain movie Tony garnering rave reviews. Johnson is also set to co-write the film with Noah Gardner and Aidan Fitzgerald, who penned the anthology thriller series Calls. He appears set to be the first filmmaker to get the project over the finish line, after it spent over a decade in development; Wizards of the Coast parent company Hasbro has worked with a number of studios trying to make the film, including Universal, 20th Century Fox, and now Legendary Entertainment.

Now, Deadline reports that Maya Hawke will star in the big-screen version of Magic: The Gathering. She is the first actor cast in the movie, which is said to be an ensemble film; however, her character will apparently be central to the movie, and Hawke was specifically approached for the role. It is Hawke's first major role since the much-heralded end of Stranger Things in January; although she joined the series in its third season, she became a key part of its ensemble.

What's Next for Maya Hawke?

After a supporting role in the dystopian romantic comedy One Night Only earlier this year, Hawke is set to play the challenger Wiress (a role originally played by Amanda Plummer) in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping this fall. Next year, she will star alongside Lewis Pullman in the fantasy romantic comedy Wishful Thinking. She is also slated to star with Kerry Condon in The God of the Woods, a miniseries adaptation of the best-selling Liz Moore mystery novel.