Vice Studios has secured the global rights to adapt the Payday video game franchise for film and television. The partnership between Vice Studios and Starbreeze Entertainment aims to bring the long-running first-person shooter franchise to the screen in non-gaming formats.
This marks the second time Starbreeze has pursued a major media adaptation. The studio previously announced a deal with Stockholm Syndrome in 2023, but rights to develop the franchise have now shifted to Vice Studios. As part of the new arrangement, Starbreeze retains ownership of the Payday intellectual property.
Payday first launched in 2011 and has since evolved to support a community of more than 50 million players. The games have generated more than $400 million in lifetime gross revenue. Starbreeze CEO Adolf Kristjansson stated the goal is to grow Payday from a game into a full entertainment platform, owning the heisting genre.
The timing is notable given Payday 3's commercial struggles. The game boasted a peak of nearly 78,000 concurrent players on Steam at launch, but recently that number has plummeted to a 24-hour peak of just 686 players. In 2025, Payday 3 saw revenue of $8.4 million USD for the full year, but in the final quarter alone, Payday 2 (released in 2013) earned $1.6 million USD compared to Payday 3's $880,000.
When Payday 3 launched in September 2023, it was supposed to be Starbreeze's major earner. Instead, it faced a disastrous release plagued by server outages and matchmaking failures that drove players away almost immediately. The company has since undertaken significant restructuring; in January 2026, Starbreeze initiated a fresh round of layoffs impacting the team directly responsible for Payday 3, with the company confirming the news through affected employees rather than an official statement.
Vice Studios is perhaps best known for the television show Gangs of London. The production company has secured substantial backing to expand its output. Vice Studios' Amy Powell is overseeing a $75 million credit facility that will help Vice fund $500 million worth of content over the next five years.
Vice Studios president Amy Powell said Payday has potential for film and television because the series has mythology behind the masks and a crew of characters with real history that is incredibly exciting to explore. The partnership reflects the broader trend of gaming publishers seeking to translate successful franchises into visual media, capitalising on proven characters and narratives.
Whether this adaptation can rejuvenate audience interest in the Payday franchise remains uncertain. The studio's challenge will be capturing the heist-game formula's appeal for viewers unfamiliar with the source material, whilst satisfying the existing fanbase. For Starbreeze, the deal offers a potential lifeline as it grapples with Payday 3's underperformance and works to stabilise its financial position. You can explore the official announcement from Starbreeze for additional details, or visit Vice Studios' website to learn more about the production company's recent work.