YouTube star-turned-filmmaker Markiplier doesn’t want to be known as the “games guy” following the success of his film Iron Lung. The movie hit cinemas on January 30 and has grossed over $48 million worldwide from a $4 million budget.
“I have to be careful with that,” Markiplier said on the Lemonade Stand podcast when asked if he was considering “games as ideas” for his next project. “There is a trap there. If I only do game adaptations, then I become the ‘games guy.’ And especially if I do horror game adaptations, I become that.”
“Everything I’ve done before this has been original writing that I’ve done,” he continued. “I feel like I could probably do another game adaptation next, and that’d be fine, but if the next one isn’t an original idea, then I am hindering myself as an artist and to be taken seriously as I move forward.”
In the interview, Markiplier teased a new game adaptation for his next movie, but didn’t offer more details. Prior to his appearance on the podcast, he said he might be taking a break from films for now. “I owe my wife a few dinners and vacations before jumping into the next project,” he told Deadline.
Adapted from the 2022 video game of the same name, Iron Lung follows a convict welded inside a submarine in an ocean made of blood. Along with Markiplier, it also stars Caroline Rose Kaplan, Troy Baker, Elsie Lovelock, Elle LaMont, David Pettitt, and Seán McLoughlin.
Iron Lung stands at a 60% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, but a much stronger audience score of 87% along with the outstanding box office results. Markiplier described its success as “a win for YouTubers”, adding: “The more that this happens the more normalized it becomes.”
The now filmmaker previously said that he wants to make the movie available to purchase digitally and at home “as soon as possible,” making it clear that he wants the project to be as independent as possible. “I might have to buy a bunch of Blu-ray burners and start burning Blu-rays on my own and shipping them out, manually, start an online store,” he said. “That kind of stuff is fun, [and] doesn’t scare me too much.”
Iron Lung is still in theaters. For more, you can check out our guide to all the upcoming horror movies, or the best horror movies to watch now.
