Summary
- Borderlands director Eli Roth takes inspiration from Marvel Studios' successful film franchise, adopting their strategies and approach to film adaptations.
- The Borderlands movie is given the freedom to create its own canon, similar to recent film adaptations, as long as it remains entertaining and pays homage to the game's roots.
- The film features a mix of the original game's canon with a new one, including easter eggs and references, while also taking comedic liberties in its approach.
Borderlands director Eli Roth explained that the film's production took notes from Marvel Studios' highly successful film franchise. The MCU raked in billions upon billions of dollars over the past 15 years, redefining film adaptations in key ways.
In an era where film adaptations are seeing more success than ever, Borderlands benefited from observing the strategies of those who went before. Productions like The Avengers, HBO's The Last of Us, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Five Nights at Freddy's are just a few that have all taken advantage of this same approach.
During an interview with IGN, Roth detailed how Gearbox Software's CEO instructed him to tackle the Borderlands movie. He was told not to feel restricted by the game's canon and instead should feel free to create his own canon for the film. Recent film adaptations have taken significant departures from their parent material, similar to the MCU. As long as the movies are entertaining and still pay homage to their roots, fans seemingly don't mind. At least not enough to affect ratings or box office returns significantly.
There are certain things that we kept very, very close, but I really worked with [Gearbox Software CEO] Randy Pitchford, and he goes, ‘Think of it like Marvel, where the comics are their own canon and the movies are their own canon, and you don't have to be married to it. The games are going to be the games and the movie's, the movie, and if they continue it, great.' So we could use certain things, but I didn't want to have to be too slavish. I didn't just want to film the game. We wanted to tell a great story on its own, but of course it's loaded with Easter eggs for the fans. It's a big movie.
However, the Borderlands director clarified that the film still features several easter eggs and references to the original game's story. Roth explained that it's not necessarily a separate canon but rather a marrying of the original canon with a new one. The 2024 film boasts an impressive cast, with Hollywood heavyweights such as Cate Blanchett, Jack Black, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Kevin Hart signed to the project. Borderlands reshoots wrapped shooting in early 2023, with a release date set for August 9, 2024.
Understandably, many Hollywood projects prefer to inject their own flair into stories taken from video games. What works in a video game to captivate fans may often not work as effectively in a film. Thanks to a video game's high level of interactivity, players sink into these characters and settings in a completely different way from how passive viewers of a film or show do.
A recent production like The Last of Us took substantial freedoms in adding its own storylines, themes, and settings to the story. While some diehard fans of the games were hoping for a faithful retelling, the show was met with acclaim and strong ratings, and now the franchise's dedicated fanbase is eagerly awaiting the show's second season. Borderlands seems to be mimicking this tried-and-true approach seen in recent film adaptations, although likely in a much more comedic fashion.
Borderlands will be released in theaters on August 9, 2024.
Borderlands
- Video Game(s)
- Borderlands, Borderlands 2, Borderlands 3, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Tales From The Borderlands
- Creation Year
- 2009
Borderlands is a action RPG first person shooter created by Gearbox Software and Published by 2K Games. The series is commonly called a looter shooter set in a space Western style, where players can select from multiple classes that can level up and acquire new skills. The franchise has quickly become one of the best selling franchises and produced spin-offs like Tales from the Borderlands as well as a film adaptation being developed by Lionsgate.
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Source: IGN