Before "The Shield," Ryan was a producer on the series "Angel." He began his primetime career on "Nash Bridges," rising to co-producer during his three-year tenure. He also worked on Fox's animated series "Life With Louie."

"Max Payne is an incredible character with a rabid fan base," Ryan said. "As a writer and a gamer, I was ecstatic when Bob Weinstein offered me the opportunity to pen this potential franchise."

"Payne" concerns an undercover DEA agent out to avenge the murder of his wife and child -- a complicated endeavor, since he's been set up for the death of a fellow narc in Gotham.

Released for PC, Sony's PlayStation 2 and Microsoft's Xbox, the game has sold more than 1.8 million units worldwide since its release last fall.

Weinstein praised Ryan for having "shown a great, edgy new voice with his characters" and added, "We look forward to being a part of his successful transition to film."

"Max Payne" is being produced by Collision Entertainment. Dimension Films will distribute domestically with Abandon Entertainment handling international distribution. "Payne" was optioned by Collision Entertainment from game producer 3D Realms for both motion pictures and television.

Michael Zoumas, Dimension's senior VP of development and production, will oversee the project for the studio along with co-prexys Andrew Rona and Brad Weston. Co-president Karen Lauder will oversee for Abandon; Collision's Scott Faye is producing.