Well, here’s something we didn’t expect but now can’t live without.
Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, the team behind Westworld, are creating an Amazon TV series based on the wildly popular video games Fallout. The game series, created by Bethesda (well, not originally. Long story.), takes place in a destroyed post-nuclear war America and has been lauded for its open-world setting, humor and mood. Speaking personally, I can say that I sunk hundreds — and I mean hundreds — of hours into Fallout 3 back in the 00s and I don’t regret a damn thing. Imagining the world of Fallout brought to life by Nolan, Joy and Amazon is downright amazing. This is ridiculously exciting news.
To show that they mean business, Amazon released this little video online:
Here’s Albert Cheng, COO and Co-Head of Television for Amazon:
“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.”
Nolan and Joy have found great success with their Westworld for HBO, a show that takes its science fiction very seriously. Fallout has a lot more humor and I wonder how much of that Nolan and Joy will retain. They’ll definitely nail the look of Fallout, that’s for sure. And with Amazon’s backing, they’ll have all the money they need to make this thing look impressive as hell.
Fallout is one of the greatest game franchises on Earth and is cherished by fans so you can expect this news will be met with a lot of excitement and trepidation. How do Nolan and Joy turn a video game with a usually-silent and customizable lead character into a series with a wide-ranging story? How do they translate the humor and weirdness from console to the small screen? Time will tell. I never expected a Fallout series but Amazon sure has put together one hell of a team here.