Hitman television series officially canceled as Derek Kolstad confirms development has stopped on the long gestating Agent 47 adaptation for Hulu
The Hitman television adaptation has been canceled and all work on the project has stopped. As of March 2026, the long gestating Hitman television series has been officially canceled. Derek Kolstad, the screenwriter behind the John Wick franchise, confirmed during a recent interview at the SXSW festival that the adaptation of the stealth action game is no longer in development. After many years of waiting, the fans of Agent 47 will not get to see his authentic story because the project has been declared permanently canceled.
The Hitman series was first announced in 2017 as a collaboration between Hulu and Fox 21 Television Studios. The project faced difficulties because its initial stage stayed unchanged according to Kolstad. The primary obstacle appeared to be corporate restructuring; when Disney acquired Fox (now Touchstone Television), the momentum behind the production vanished.
The pilot script, which Kolstad had finished writing, was never approved for production according to him. He expressed personal disappointment, citing his passion for the character and the game series, but clarified that without financial backing from a major studio, the creative work cannot translate into a finished product.
The Hitman franchise has suffered three failed attempts to create live action movies that will appeal to both critics and audiences. The history of the property on screen remains divisive:
- Hitman (2007): Starring Timothy Olyphant, this film was criticized by both the core gaming community and film critics for failing to capture the game's tone.
- Hitman Agent 47 (2015): A reboot starring Rupert Friend, which received even lower critical scores and struggled at the box office.
There are currently no other active live action adaptations of Hitman in development. The video game series continues to be a pillar of the stealth genre; however, Agent 47's transition to serialized television programming has reached its conclusion. For now, the character remains exclusive to the gaming medium as the industry's focus shifts toward other successful video game adaptations.
