Margot does Monopoly! Robbie set to produce film based on iconic board game – as baffled fans quip movie will be ‘a lecture about the crushing weight of capitalism’

Margot Robbie is set to produce the film version of the iconic board game Monopoly, but the premise has left fans baffled.

The 33-year-old Barbie star’s production company LuckyChap – also made up of and partners Tom Ackerley and Josie McNamara – will produce the live-action feature film alongside Monopoly backers Hasbro Entertainment, per Variety.

Adam Fogelson, chairman of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, revealed that LuckyChap has “a clear position” on the Monopoly movie – featuring characters like Rich Uncle Pennybags – while speaking at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.

Fogelson said:I couldn’t imagine a better production team for this beloved and iconic brand than LuckyChap. They are exceptional producers who choose their projects with great attention and care and join Monopoly with a clear position.

“We are extremely excited to be working with the entire LuckyChap team on what we all believe could be their next blockbuster.”

LuckyChap said in a statement: ‘Monopoly is a top property – pun fully intended. Like all the best IPs, this game has resonated around the world for generations, and we are so excited to bring this game to life alongside the incredible teams involved at Lionsgate and Hasbro.”

Zev Foreman, Head of Film at Hasbro Entertainment, said: “As one of the most iconic games in the world, Monopoly provides an incredible platform for storytelling. We are thrilled to have the unique vision of LuckyChap and Lionsgate alongside us to bring this historic piece of popular culture to the big screen.”

James Myers will oversee Monopoly on behalf of the studio.

LuckyChap hopes to emulate the monster success of Barbie – which became the highest-grossing film of 2023, a month after it was released in cinemas last year.

The blockbuster – starring Robbie and Ryan Gosling – has The Super Mario Bros. Movie at the worldwide box office and has grossed a total of $1.36 billion since its release in July.

The smash hit film has also become the highest-grossing film in Warner Bros. history.

Fans were left confused about the premise of the Monopoly movie, with one writing: “Most likely a lecture on how terrible capitalism is and socialism is the way rather than some FUN movie.”

Another wrote: “The film will be five hours long and people will quit before it’s over,” while a third wrote: “I wonder if the film will be about the crushing weight of capitalism or just the monopolistic man who crushes real estate.”

Another fan wrote: ‘Millions of original stories waiting to be told but Robbie says no, what we need is a Monopoly man movie. Fuck this.”

‘Nobody wants to watch a movie about Monopoly. They really said, “Let’s make a boring movie about a boring board game.”

Monopoly was originally intended to warn players about the dangers of capitalism, but ultimately became a celebration of empire.

The first version of the board game was called ‘The Landlord’s Game’ and was supposed to show the unfairness of private property.

It was founded in 1902 by Elizabeth Magie, who believed in fairer taxation and wanted a single tax on land ownership to replace all other taxes.

She thought it was downright unfair that landowners were raking in profits by passively owning land and wanted to change that.

The board game she called “The Landlord’s Game” was essentially a satire and she thought that if people played it they would “see clearly the gross injustice of our present land system.” How wrong she was.

In its original version, players used paper money to purchase utilities and property, just like in the modern game.

But instead of passing ‘Go’ and collecting $200, you passed a box that said ‘Work on Mother Earth Pays’ and got $100.

One corner of the sign read “No Trespassing.” Go to jail,” which she said was owned by a British gentleman and would mean “foreign ownership of American territory.”

Magie patented The Landlord’s Game in 1904 and approached board game makers Parker Brothers, but they turned it down, saying it was too complicated.

Meanwhile, the game spread across the country – people made their own versions with paper – until it found its way to Charles Darrow in Philadelphia in 1933.

He was shown the game by his friend Charles Todd and promptly stole the idea and passed it off as his own, adding some more color to the board and suggesting that people use small household objects as playing tokens.

During the 1930s it began to sell steadily at stores like FAO Schwarz until Parker Brothers decided to buy it from Darrow in 1935 for $7,000 – worth more than $120,000 today.

Parker Brothers added game pieces including a shoe, a top hat and an iron, the Chance and Community Chest cards and a cartoon character called Mr Monopoly, which gave rise to the game’s new name.

The company tried to patent the game, but realized that Darrow did not actually own it.

They had to pay $10,000 to Daniel Lyman, who had patented his own version called Finance.

They also tracked down Magie, who lived in Arlington, Virginia, and paid her $500 with the promise that they would make a version of The Landlord’s Game.

Darrow, meanwhile, made millions even after Parker Brothers cut his royalties.

When Parker Brothers finally made The Landlord’s Game in 1939, it bombed and most of the 10,000 copies were returned. Magic would no doubt have been heartbroken.