Production on Amazon Prime’s TV Adaptation of the popular action RPG series Fallout is
picking up steam as casting for the show continues to add big names to its roster.
In this video I’d like to briefly discuss what we know so far about this upcoming Fallout
adaptation including the most recent casting announcements for the show.
The series of Fallout Games are set in a post apocalyptic age during the 21st, 22nd, and
23rd centuries.
It presents a fictionalized version of humanity’s history and future where the Cold War paranoia
of the 1950s continued to dominate the United States culture and in the year 2077 culminated
in a devastating nuclear war between the US and China creating the wasteland that is the
game’s setting.
One of the signature features of the Fallout series is its steampunk retro futuristic art
style which was inspired by 1950s literature and media related to the Atomic Age.
The game's atmosphere is heavily influenced by the post-World War II United States and
its environment filled with hope for a better future that advancements in technology would
bring combined with the fear of nuclear war.
The first Fallout game was released in 1997 and was set in a post-apocalyptic Southern
California, beginning in the year 2161.
Since its release there have been several more entries and spinoffs further adding to
the lore of the Fallout universe.
It certainly is no easy task to adapt a video game series set in a universe with such a
rich and sprawling history.
A tv series adaptation of Fallout was first teased back in Summer of 2020.
The live action show is being produced by Amazon Studios and Westworld’s creators
Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy’s Kilter Films in association with Todd Howard from Bethesda
Game Studios and James Altman from Bethesda Softworks who are listed as executive producers.
The series will be streaming on Amazon Prime.
While Nolan and Joy are attached as executive producers Variety reported in January of this
year that Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner have signed on as co-showrunners of
the video game adaptation.
Robertson-Dworet is best known for her work on the film screenplays for 2018s “Tomb
Raider” and 2019s “Captain Marvel.”
While Wagner’s past credits include “Silicon Valley,” “Portlandia,” “Baskets,”
and “The Office.”
Jonathan Nolan is currently set to direct the series pilot episode.
Shortly after the showrunner’s announcement casting reveals began, starting with Walton
Goggins being cast for a lead role in the series.
Goggins is an actor in high demand appearing in many tv and film roles including the series
Justified, The Shield, and The Unicorn and the films The Hateful Eight and Django Unchained.
While Amazon had no comment on the character Goggins will play in the Fallout series, according
to Variety’s sources he will portray a character based on the ghouls from the games.
Ghouls are humans whose flesh has been ravaged and disfigured due to intense and prolonged
exposure to radiation but who are also largely immune to radiation and nuclear fallout as
a result.
Yellowjacket’s star Ella Purnell was also announced in a lead role.
Purnell has recently starred in Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead from Netflix.
And though details regarding Purnell’s Fallout role are not being revealed, Variety reports
that she is believed to be playing a lead character known as Jean, a young woman with
a can-do attitude who may be hiding a dangerous secret.
The most recent casting choices just announced by Variety include Kyle MacLachlan, Xelia
Mendes-Jones, and Aaron Moten who are joining as series regulars.
So far there are no details regarding the characters they are set to portray.
Perhaps best known for his work with David Lynch MacLachlan has starred in 1984s Dune,
Twin Peaks, and Blue Velvet.
Mendes Jones will appear in the Netflix film Havoc and in season 2 of the Wheel of Time
series.
And Moten who most recently starred in Father Stu will be seen next in the Apple film Emancipation
also starring Will Smith.
While details are scant regarding the plot for the Fallout tv series it is known that
the show will follow the game’s setting as a retro-futuristic alternate future several
decades after a nuclear war between China and the US has left most of the world an irradiated
wasteland.
One can’t help but wonder if the series will attempt to depict and subsequently stay
true to a particular portion of the game’s storyline or if it will feature an entirely
new timeline of events as was the case with the much maligned Halo Series that recently
aired on Paramount Plus.
Video Game Adaptations are notorious more often than not for being a big miss for fans
of the original franchise.
I find that there doesn’t seem to be much middle ground when it comes to fan reception
of films and shows based on beloved video games, fans will either love it or hate it.
It’ll be interesting to see where this series will fall not just for fans but also general
audiences encountering Fallout for the first time.
But I’m curious to know what you think about this particular tv series adaptation.
What do you think the showrunners need to do in order to make a successful adaptation
of Fallout?
Do you think the showrunners should try to adapt a particular Fallout storyline as closely
as possible or pursue an alternate timeline or perhaps expand into entirely new events
and characters?
Are there any casting choices that excite you?
Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.
I hope you enjoyed this video.
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Thank you all so much for your support and as always have a very nerdy day.