The creators of ‘Westworld’, Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, are set to tackle another ambitious sci-fi series. Nolan and Joy are developing a series adaptations of the Interplay Entertainment/Bethesda Game Studios ‘Fallout’ franchise for Amazon Prime Video. They are producing through their Kilter Films banner, and Amazon is committed to the series which will move immediately into production if execs are happy with the scripts.
In a joint statement, Nolan and Joy declared (via Variety):
“Fallout is one of the greatest game series of all time. Each chapter of this insanely imaginative story has cost us countless hours we could have spent with family and friends. So we’re incredibly excited to partner with Todd Howard and the rest of the brilliant lunatics at Bethesda to bring this massive, subversive, and darkly funny universe to life with Amazon Studios.”
Howard added:
“Over the last decade, we looked at many ways to bring Fallout to the screen. But it was clear from the moment I first spoke with Jonah and Lisa a few years ago, that they and the team at Kilter were the ones to do it right. We’re enormous fans of their work and couldn’t be more excited to work with them and Amazon Studios.”
Finally, Amazon Studios’ COO and co-head of television, Albert Cheng, stated:
“Fallout is an iconic global franchise, with legions of fans worldwide and a rich, deeply compelling storyline that powers it. And Jonah and Lisa are the perfect storytellers to bring this series to life. We’re thrilled to join with Bethesda to bring Fallout to television.”
‘Fallout’ is a first-person shooter/roleplaying game, set in the distant, post-apocalyptic future, which draws heavy inspiration from 1950s sci-fi and advertising imagery. The first game was created by Tim Cain and his team, after they crafted a similar game called ‘Wasteland’ for Electronic Arts. ‘Fallout’ was released in 1997, and there have since been three sequels, and four spin-offs. The ‘Fallout’ games can be played on PC or Mac as well as on various gaming consoles.
In the game, players portray survivors of the nuclear apocalypse, called Vault Dwellers, who must journey through the irradiated wastelands, defeating horrific mutations, to accomplish a goal. The games depict devastated locations familiar to players, like California and Washington DC. The games are also peppered with pop culture references and in-jokes. Speaking of pop culture, the pop-punk/emo band Fall Out Boy is named after the cartoony mascot of the game.
Nolan and Joy are hoping to retain the games’ “harshness of the wasteland set against the previous generation’s utopian idea of a better world through nuclear energy,” but the TV series will also be “sprinkled with moments of ironic humor and B-movie-nuclear-fantasies.”
This is just the latest video game that is being turned into a TV series. Showtime has a ‘Halo’ show in the works. Lionsgate is developing a program based on ‘Borderlands’ and Cate Blanchett is reportedly being sought for a leading role. Finally, ‘Chernobyl’ creator Craig Mazin is hoping to turn ‘The Last of Us’ into a hit for HBO.
Are you a fan of ‘Fallout’? Are you looking forward to seeing it turned into a TV series?
