Hideo Kojima says he won't make movies because he's too much of a "perfectionist"

Hideo Kojima
(Image credit: Kojima Productions)

If you follow Hideo Kojima on social media, you’ll know how much the celebrated designer of games like Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding 2 loves movies. But while Kojima harbors some dreams to get behind the camera himself, he expresses doubt it will ever happen.

At the premiere of the  Hideo Kojima documentary, Connecting Worlds at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City, Kojima attended a post-screening Q&A hosted by Geoff Keighley. 

Given that the documentary, directed by Glen Milner, partially delves into Kojima’s love for movies and friendships with Hollywood figures like Guillermo del Toro, Mads Mikkelsen, and Léa Seydoux, Keighley asked Kojima if he wants to direct movies in addition to games.

Kojima demurred, saying (via English interpreter): “For me, movies are special. And it’s so special, I can’t do it.” 

While Kojima is advising on the upcoming film adaptation of Death Stranding, he added that he is "a perfectionist," and that his habits as a game director to keep iterating wouldn’t fly with movies that have comparatively tighter turnaround times than games. 

“In games, no matter how much I make it perfect, it doesn’t end. Movies are two hours and I have to mix in everything, so I think I will never finish making it if I start making a movie. I’ll be doing it all day.”

After finding huge success with the Metal Gear Solid franchise, Kojima parted ways with publishing giant Konami in 2015. With partnership with Sony, Kojima re-established Kojima Productions as an independent outfit and developed the acclaimed 2019 game Death Stranding.

Shortly after leaving Konami, Kojima said he actually received “a lot of offers” to direct movies. But now that he’s the head of a game studio, Kojima says he doesn’t want to leave his staff behind to helm a film. Said Kojima: “If I were to film and direct a movie, I would have to get out of the studio for about a year, and I can’t do that.”

Still, Kojima has thought about emulating his heroes like David Cronenberg and Stanley Kubrick. He admitted that his age – he’ll turn 60 later this year – has compelled him to think about what else he wants to do while he’s still alive. 

Kojima also expressed his opinion on AI, saying it should never "be above" human creativity.

Eric Francisco
Contributor

Eric Francisco is a freelance entertainment journalist and graduate of Rutgers University. If a movie or TV show has superheroes, spaceships, kung fu, or John Cena, he's your guy to make sense of it. A former senior writer at Inverse, his byline has also appeared at Vulture, The Daily Beast, Observer, and The Mary Sue. You can find him screaming at Devils hockey games or dodging enemy fire in Call of Duty: Warzone.

Read more
Hideo Kojima side by side with I Saw The TV Glow
Hideo Kojima has just given his seal of approval to one of 2024's best but most underseen horror movies
Death Stranding 2 screenshot
Hideo Kojima is hard at work on Death Stranding 2, but he doesn't know how much longer he can stand the grueling game development process: "It's incredibly tough"
Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, and Ke Huy Quan in The Electric State
After 2 days, Hideo Kojima still hasn't shared his thoughts on The Electric State, and fans fear it won't even get a Madame Web-style six-word review
The Last of Us 2
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann sounds like he's contemplating the end of his career: "When is it time to stop?"
Death Stranding 2
Hideo Kojima says Death Stranding's themes of connection came about because "I thought I lost everything when I became alone nine years ago"
Death Stranding
Hideo Kojima's favorite movies of 2024 include Dune 2, body horror The Substance, and anime Look Back – as well as some deep cuts you might not have expected
Latest in Games
Everybody's Golf Hot Shots
The surprise theme of today's Nintendo Direct was classic PlayStation franchises getting a comeback without Sony's involvement
Hogwarts Legacy how many spells
Unannounced Hogwarts Legacy DLC reportedly canceled, partly because the studio wasn't sure it'd be worth players' money
Assassin's Creed Shadows screenshot showing Yasuke kneeling and praying while wearing a traditional purple robe
Ubisoft reaches deal with Tencent to create $4.3 billion mini-Ubisoft subsidiary to "spearhead development" on new Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six games
Black Myth: Wukong
English is no longer the biggest language on Steam as Chinese gamers embrace PC gaming even harder after Black Myth: Wukong
Skyrim
Ex-Bethesda dev says his new studio isn't making a "little Skyrim," but does channel a key part of the iconic RPG: "Stuff got built because somebody cared about building it"
Assassin's Creed Shadows Belly of the Beast Ise Sadaoki sending Naoe to get papers
How to retrieve the papers in the Assassin's Creed Shadows Belly of the Beast quest
Latest in News
Everybody's Golf Hot Shots
The surprise theme of today's Nintendo Direct was classic PlayStation franchises getting a comeback without Sony's involvement
Hogwarts Legacy how many spells
Unannounced Hogwarts Legacy DLC reportedly canceled, partly because the studio wasn't sure it'd be worth players' money
Ultimate X-Men #14
Ultimate X-Men #14 pays homage to a classic Wolverine moment as the Shadow King returns
Assassin's Creed Shadows screenshot showing Yasuke kneeling and praying while wearing a traditional purple robe
Ubisoft reaches deal with Tencent to create $4.3 billion mini-Ubisoft subsidiary to "spearhead development" on new Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six games
Kaitlyn Dever as Abby in The Last Of Us season 2
The Last of Us showrunner says he isn't worried about fan reaction to season 2: "The best way we could respect our fans and honor them is to not worry about them"
Black Myth: Wukong
English is no longer the biggest language on Steam as Chinese gamers embrace PC gaming even harder after Black Myth: Wukong