TOKYO, September 20 — The story begins with a partnership that has quietly deepened over several years, and this week it produced its most visible result yet. On Thursday, September 17, during the Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2026 Broadcast, game designer Hideo Kojima announced that actor Bill Skarsgard will star as the lead in “Physint,” his upcoming action-espionage video game. The casting news follows the prior week’s announcement that “Physint” will now be published by Xbox after being scrapped at Kojima Productions’ longtime partner publisher PlayStation.
For those involved, the shift marks a significant realignment: a project once destined for one platform holder now sits with another, and with it comes a broader creative mandate.
A partnership that extends beyond games
Xbox and Kojima Productions have said this expansion of their working relationship will “extend beyond games, with Xbox and Kojima Productions collaborating across film and television to bring new stories to broader audiences.” Kojima, creator of the “Death Stranding” and “Metal Gear” video game franchises, was already working with Xbox to publish “OD,” his next planned release before “Physint.” “OD” is a horror game made in collaboration with Jordan Peele which features a cast including Sophia Lillis and Hunter Schafer.
Per Kojima Productions, “Physint” is the third original IP from Kojima Productions and has been described by Hideo Kojima as the culmination of his 40-year career as a video game creator. With the full support of Xbox, “Physint” will use cutting-edge technology and a stellar cast to create a game experience like no other, with the aim of setting a new benchmark for the action-espionage genre.
The cast takes shape
For “Physint,” Skarsgard joins a cast that also includes previously announced stars Charlee Fraser, Don Lee and Minami Hamabe. Kojima said while announcing the casting news Thursday during the Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2026 Broadcast: “I’m delighted to confirm the lead role for Physint will be Bill Skarsgard. We are both long-time fans of each other’s work, and we’ve decided to embark on this new adventure together.
The costume fittings, scans, and camera tests we conducted with Bill and Charlee earlier this year gave me tremendous confidence in the direction of the project.” Best known for his performance as Pennywise in Warner Bros.’ “It” film and TV franchise, Skarsgard was most recently seen in Gus Van Sant’s “Dead Man’s Wire.” He’ll next star in Peter Berg’s “The Mosquito Bowl” and Andrew Niccol’s “Lords of War” opposite Nicolas Cage. Earlier this year, Skarsgard was featured in “The Death of Robin Hood” along with Hugh Jackman and Jodie Comer.
The announcement was made during the Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2026 Broadcast, and a video of Kojima’s announcement was released alongside the news. What unfolds next will be watched closely by players and industry observers alike, as “Physint” moves forward under its new publishing arrangement with a lead actor now firmly in place.
