Ritchie to direct his 'Gamekeeper'

HOLLYWOOD, July 26 (UPI) -- Guy Ritchie plans to direct the Hollywood film version of his Virgin Comics series "The Gamekeeper," the first of the series to be developed as a feature.

"Gamekeeper" is part of Virgin's Director's Cut comic line, which includes titles from John Woo, Terry Gilliam, Shekhar Kapur, Jonathan Mostow, Ed Burns and Nicolas Cage, Variety reported Thursday.

"After reading Guy's comics, we knew instantly that the action-packed story and complex characters would resonate with film audiences," said Jeff Robinov, Warner Bros. production president.

Ritchie came up with the concept and British comic book writer Andy Diggle handles the writing duties. The first issue of the 10-issue, limited-release series was published March 28.

The plot revolves around a reclusive caretaker of a Scottish estate with a seemingly endless knowledge about animal species. When the alleged killer of his son surfaces, the caretaker learns Europe's urban landscape is not that different from the natural settings to which he's accustomed.