Zack Snyder set to write and direct a new UFC movie

Now, Snyder directing what sounds like a fairly-generic sports movie, in this case set in the world of MMA, would still be notable if that was the long and the short of it. What makes "Brawler" more notable, in ways that are not altogether good, is that this is a UFC project. Snyder and UFC have partnered in the making of this movie, essentially making it akin to "Barbie" for Mattel or "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" for Nintendo. It's a narrative film, and it's also marketing for UFC.

Dana White was sitting next to Snyder in a photo provided related to this announcement, but also there was another producer, Turki Alalshikh (sometimes stylized Al-Sheikh). He's the owner of "The Ring," a boxing magazine, but he's also a Saudi Arabian minister and the Saudi government's General Entertainment Authority. 

Politically speaking, ties to White is sufficient to put off some people, but ties to the Saudi government, often accused of "sportswashing" and things of that ilk, adds fuel to that fire. Of course, the UFC audience is not primed to care about either of those things, and perhaps the vision is that "Brawler" can succeed solely by bringing in UFC fans who are also movie fans. Snyder himself is no stranger to a devoted, semi-toxic fan base, a group that essentially complained "Zack Snyder's Justice League" into existence. Throw that all together and, sure, "Brawler" will probably be successful. 

(h/t The Hollywood Reporter)