Pasek and Paul to Develop Musical Film Version of The Oregon Trail

According to a Variety report, Tony and Oscar-winning songwriting partners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are working on a musical film adaptation of the computer game The Oregon Trail. The project reunites Pasek and Paul with Will Speck and Josh Gordon, their collaborators on the new film Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile.

Variety describes the Oregon Trail adaptation as a "darkly comedic" interpretation of the classic computer game, which positions the player as a wagon leader guiding a group of early American settlers west in the mid-19th century. No studio is currently attached to the film, but the creative team has obtained the rights to the property and the project is said to be in "active development."

Pask and Paul won a 2017 Tony Award for their score for the long-running musical Dear Evan Hansen. They are also well known for penning the music to the film The Greatest Showman and writing lyrics for the score to La La Land, for which they won an Academy Award.