Hideo Kojima and Xbox have significantly expanded their partnership, with the Japanese game creator confirming major new developments for two highly anticipated projects: the experimental horror title OD and the action-espionage game PHYSINT.
The biggest announcement came during the Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2026 broadcast, where Kojima Productions confirmed that Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård will play the lead role in PHYSINT. Skarsgård is internationally recognised for portraying Pennywise in It, It: Chapter Two and HBO’s It: Welcome to Derry, making his casting one of the most notable celebrity additions to a Kojima Productions game to date.
The announcement follows Xbox’s September 9 confirmation that it will publish PHYSINT, expanding its existing relationship with Kojima Productions beyond OD. According to Xbox, the companies are also exploring collaboration across film and television, suggesting that the relationship is becoming broader than a conventional game-publishing arrangement.
Bill Skarsgård Becomes the Face of PHYSINT
Kojima confirmed that Bill Skarsgård will portray the protagonist of PHYSINT, an original action-espionage game that Kojima has described as a project representing the culmination of more than 40 years of his career in game development.
Skarsgård’s involvement is particularly notable because of his extensive work across both mainstream cinema and horror. His portrayal of Pennywise made him one of the most recognisable actors associated with modern horror, while his filmography also includes John Wick: Chapter 4, Atomic Blonde, Barbarian, Nosferatu and The Crow. He recently reprised Pennywise for It: Welcome to Derry.
Kojima said he and Skarsgård have been long-time fans of each other’s work. The two have already completed costume fittings, body scans and camera tests, with Kojima saying those sessions gave him confidence in the direction of the project.
The official PHYSINT announcement also revealed a new poster featuring Skarsgård and Charlee Fraser, with photographs personally taken by Kojima.
PHYSINT Already Has an International Cast
Skarsgård is not the only major actor attached to PHYSINT.
The previously announced cast includes:
- Bill Skarsgård — lead protagonist
- Charlee Fraser — known for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
- Don Lee — known internationally for Train to Busan and other Korean productions
- Minami Hamabe — known for Godzilla Minus One
Kojima Productions originally revealed Fraser, Don Lee and Hamabe as part of PHYSINT’s ensemble during its 10th-anniversary event, Beyond the Strand, in Tokyo in September 2025. Skarsgård has now been added as the central lead.
Kojima has also indicated that additional casting information will be revealed in the future, meaning the currently announced cast may not represent the full lineup.
PHYSINT Is Kojima’s New Action-Espionage Project
PHYSINT is being developed as a completely original intellectual property rather than another entry in an existing franchise.
Kojima has described the project as the culmination of his more than four decades in the video-game industry and as an attempt to redefine the action-espionage genre without being restricted by existing conventions.
The project is particularly interesting because Kojima’s career is closely associated with the evolution of stealth and espionage games. PHYSINT therefore gives him an opportunity to revisit that territory through a new intellectual property rather than continuing an established franchise.
Xbox is now the publishing partner for the project. Xbox and Kojima Productions officially announced the expanded relationship on September 9, stating that their collaboration would extend beyond OD to PHYSINT.
What Happened to the PlayStation Partnership?
PHYSINT was originally announced as a PlayStation project in 2024. The project has since moved into a new publishing relationship with Xbox.
The September 2026 announcement formally confirmed Xbox as the new publishing partner. Xbox said the partnership with Kojima Productions now covers both OD and PHYSINT.
The change represents a major shift in the platform relationship surrounding Kojima’s next-generation projects, particularly because Kojima Productions had previously worked closely with PlayStation on titles including Death Stranding.
Rather than simply replacing one publisher with another, however, Xbox has positioned the relationship as a broader collaboration involving games as well as film and television.
OD Is Also Progressing
While PHYSINT received the headline casting announcement, Kojima also provided a significant update on OD, the mysterious horror project being developed with Xbox.
Kojima said development on OD is progressing smoothly. Performance capture and ADR — additional dialogue recording — had previously been paused during the SAG-AFTRA strike but resumed during 2026.
According to Kojima, Sophia Lillis and Hunter Schafer, along with the rest of the team, have delivered what he described as intense performances.
New behind-the-scenes footage showing Lillis and Schafer during performance capture was also presented during the Xbox Tokyo Game Show broadcast.
OD’s Cast Includes Sophia Lillis, Hunter Schafer and Udo Kier
OD’s announced cast currently includes three major actors:
Sophia Lillis is known for It, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves and other film and television projects.
Hunter Schafer is known for Euphoria and has become one of the most prominent young actors working in film and television.
Udo Kier, the veteran German actor, is also attached to the project.
Kojima Productions originally revealed the three performers during OD’s announcement at The Game Awards in 2023. The studio also confirmed that filmmaker Jordan Peele, director of Get Out, Us and Nope, is collaborating on the project as one of several storytellers involved with the experience.
Importantly, OD and PHYSINT are separate projects. Bill Skarsgård’s newly confirmed role is in PHYSINT, not OD.
OD Is Designed Around Fear
OD is perhaps Kojima’s most experimental announced project.
Kojima Productions has described it as an experience focused on testing the player’s threshold for fear. The project is intended to blur the boundaries between a traditional video game and cinematic media.
Kojima previously explained that OD is intended to explore what happens when people become overwhelmed by fear, while using Xbox’s technology to create an experience that would not fit neatly into conventional gaming categories.
The project is also reportedly structured as an anthology, with OD-KNOCK representing one part of the larger concept. The currently shown material involving Sophia Lillis and Hunter Schafer appears to be connected to this particular segment.
Kojima Wants OD to Push the Limits of Horror
Rather than simply creating another conventional horror game, Kojima has repeatedly described OD as an experiment in fear.
The project is being developed around the idea of testing the psychological limits of players, while combining game technology, performance capture and cinematic presentation.
The latest footage showed Sophia Lillis performing scenes involving a progressively escalating sense of fear, reinforcing the project’s emphasis on performance and atmosphere rather than conventional action.
Kojima has not yet announced a release date for OD, and significant gameplay details remain undisclosed.
Xbox and Kojima’s Relationship Is Now Much Larger
The relationship between Kojima Productions and Xbox originally began with OD.
At The Game Awards in 2023, Kojima announced the collaboration with Xbox Game Studios and explained that Microsoft’s cloud technology would help the studio pursue an unusual form of interactive entertainment.
The partnership has now expanded considerably.
Xbox will publish both OD and PHYSINT, while the companies have also stated that they intend to collaborate beyond games, including film and television projects.
Kojima recently visited Xbox’s headquarters in Redmond, where he met with Xbox leadership to discuss the future of games and digital entertainment.
During the Tokyo Game Show presentation, Kojima also thanked Xbox for believing in his vision and for continuing the partnership with Kojima Productions.
From Pennywise to Kojima’s Espionage Hero
For Bill Skarsgård, PHYSINT represents a very different type of role from Pennywise.
His portrayal of the demonic clown became one of his defining performances, but his career has increasingly moved across horror, action, thriller and dramatic productions.
PHYSINT will place him in the centre of Kojima’s cinematic approach to game development, potentially requiring extensive performance capture, facial scanning and physical acting.
Kojima’s comments suggest that the process has already begun. Costume fittings, scans and camera testing involving Skarsgård and Charlee Fraser were conducted earlier this year.
The combination of Kojima’s cinematic game design and Skarsgård’s experience in large-scale film productions makes PHYSINT one of the more unusual actor-game collaborations currently in development.
A New Era for Kojima Productions
The latest announcements establish a new phase for Kojima Productions.
The studio is simultaneously developing two highly experimental projects with Xbox: a horror-focused project in OD and an action-espionage title in PHYSINT.
Both projects are built around major film and television talent, continuing Kojima’s long-standing interest in combining cinematic storytelling with interactive entertainment.
For PHYSINT, the addition of Bill Skarsgård gives the project its first officially confirmed lead actor and provides a much clearer picture of the game’s intended cinematic direction.
For OD, the resumption of performance capture and ADR provides the strongest recent indication that the project remains actively in production.
Neither game currently has a confirmed public release date, so the next major information from Kojima Productions is expected to focus on gameplay, additional cast members, story details and eventually release plans.
For now, the most important development is clear: Kojima Productions and Xbox are no longer working together only on OD. Their partnership now encompasses PHYSINT as well, with Bill Skarsgård leading the new espionage project and Sophia Lillis, Hunter Schafer and Udo Kier continuing as the publicly announced cast of OD.