Lucy Liu and Eloise Singer are expanding “The Pirate Queen” with a co-written graphic novel, a game in development and an international tour planned for next year. Singer shared the plans with Variety as she was named to BAFTA’s 2026 Breakthrough U.K. cohort for the project “The Pirate Queen: No Safe Waters.”
The project reimagines the story of Cheng Shih, a powerful female pirate who operated in the South China Sea at the beginning of the 18th century. “No Safe Waters” screened in the Cannes Film Festival’s Immersive Competition this year. It follows the original “The Pirate Queen” VR experience, released in 2024 and nominated for an Emmy.
Unlike the VR version, “No Safe Waters” uses projection, sound and movement to fill a shared space. Audiences experience storms and fleets around them, with dragons moving beneath their feet. Liu narrates and produces alongside Singer, who wrote and directed the project; Liu does not appear on screen.
Singer has worked on “The Pirate Queen” for a decade, including the past three years with Liu. She said the different formats offer audiences distinct ways to experience the story. Liu described the wider project as a storyworld, saying she wanted to support its creative vision and tell Cheng Shih’s story with nuance and scale.
BAFTA announced Singer’s selection on Nov. 4. She was chosen in the games category for “No Safe Waters” as part of the Netflix-supported program for emerging screen talent. Singer said she was especially proud to be recognized for an immersive project.
Singer also said she has seen increased distribution interest in “The Pirate Queen” and believes immersive storytelling is beginning to show a more scalable and sustainable future. Liu described the form as an extension of cinematic language that gives audiences a different role in their relationship with a story.
Sources: Variety.