Variety's Ben Fritz reports, in his shiny new video game blog, that a Grand Theft Auto movie starring Eminem was virtually a done deal with one of six major studios in place last spring.

It was such a sure thing that Variety and a number of other publications had actually done interviews and were prepping to write the article. But at the last minute the whole thing turned to ash and blew away in the wind.

It's not clear what helped convince the Take-Two folks, who have long been wooed by Hollywood to turn their baby into a movie, or why the deal fell apart, but both likely have something to do more with Take-Two management than Rockstar input.

The Grand Theft Auto Movie That Almost Was [The Cut Scene]