‘You’re asking them to surrender that’: Fallout’s Jonathan Nolan wasn’t sure if fans would like the Prime Video show’s biggest changes
Exclusive: “That was one of the most intimidating but exciting challenges”
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Jonathan Nolan has opened up on the “intimidating but exciting” challenge of bringing Bethesda’s belovedFalloutgames to life in another medium.
TheWestworld,Person of Interest, andBatmanmovie writer, who led development onAmazon’s live-action addition to theFalloutfranchise, is a self-confessed fan of the post-apocalyptic action-role playing games. While that stood him in good stead for creating thePrime Videoseries, though, Nolan exclusively told TechRadar that it was nonetheless daunting to try and deliver an adaptation that long-time fans would be happy with.
Asked how he went about ensuring that Prime Video’sFalloutTV showwas accessible to newcomers as it was respectful to Bethesda’s source material, Nolan told me: “That was one of the most intimidating but exciting challenges in bringing these brilliant games to life. For me, it was really about approaching the series as a huge fan of the games and trying to hold onto what was essential.
“Most of the time with adaptations, you’re adding things. So, with a novel, you’re adding images that make things more vivid and real. With video game adaptations, you’re doing the opposite. You’re taking a degree of interactivity and control that the player has, and you’re asking them to surrender that, so you immediately some of that essentiality.”
Honoring – and poking fun at – Bethesda’s source material
However, despite the inevitable worry that the change in medium brought, Nolan was confident that the writing team he assembled – including co-showrunner Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet – would do justice toFallout’s storied history.
Not only that, Nolan was also optimistic that the TV adaptation’s infinite number of tributes to Bethesda’s iconic games, which includes a whole host of Easter eggs and other in-universe references, would delightFalloutdiehards. That, Nolan believes, would ensure that there would be little to no backlash from fans about the necessary creative tweaks – and even gentle ribbing of the franchise itself – whenFalloutdebuts on Prime Video, aka one of thebest streaming services.
I had an explosively entertaining time with #FalloutOnPrime . Its devotion to the source material, plus its original, high-octane, and hilarious tale ensures that the iconic “everyone liked that” meme will do the rounds again once more people see it, too: https://t.co/ggt1ROvsRAApril 10, 2024
“I’ve always been drawn to games that [Bethesda boss] Todd [Howard] makes,” Nolan added. “There are so many choices you can make in those games and that ironically speaks to the creative challenges of bringing this show to life.
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“We could have had our Vault dweller Lucy [played by Ella Purnell] as the sole protagonist, but Graham and Geneva settled on an ensemble of Lucy, Maximus [Aaron Moten], and The Ghoul [Walton Goggins] that speaks to the one of the game series' hallmarks where your character can be good, bad, or somewhere in-between, and where they can join one faction or another. That gives you people with varying moralities and allows them to collide together to great effect.
“There’s also a great joke-filled moment in episode three where The Ghoul complains about constantly getting sidetracked, which is one of our many, many nods to the delicious fun of these games, which have this movie-like quality to them alongside all of their playable pieces. So, we hope fans appreciate all of those homages and respect the slight changes we made to make this a more cinematic experience.”
Amazon’sFalloutseries will launch on Prime Video today (April 10) in the US, and April 11 in the UK and Australia. Read myFalloutTV show opinion pieceto see what I thought of its first four episodes, before reading more from my exclusive chats with Nolan, Howard, and the show’s cast below.
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As TechRadar’s senior entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You’ll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest.
An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as thisMoon Knight TV spot.
Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across.
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