When Jonah Nolan first sat down to ideate for a Fallout TV show, he knew he was taking on a big task. The franchise has become one of the biggest names in the gaming industry, and doing it justice would require a high amount of thought and effort.
When adapting a beloved title such as Fallout, it’s important to understand the nuances of the series. It appears the series is in good hands, as Nolan has understood one of the most important aspects when it comes to a Fallout story: originality.
The Fallout TV Show Will Feature a Never-Before-Seen Story
The issue with a lot of live-action adaptations is that they are not able to find a good balance between staying true to the source material and attempting something new. The same can’t be said for Fallout. Each game in the series has featured original storylines and, thankfully, Nolan has understood this key factor.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Nolan spoke at length about how he and the team came upon their ideas for a Fallout series.
We sat down with [the game’s developer] Todd Howard and Athena Wickham of Kilter Films five years ago, and it came together. It was clear from the first conversation they were excited about the idea of an original story within this world.
Nolan went on to talk about how every iteration of the Fallout series has provided an original story for the player. While some characters may make a repeat appearance, the way they interact with the player and the role they play in the overall narrative are very different.
He also spoke about how they chose the casting for the series. Walton Goggins, who plays the Ghoul, is going to be the ruthless veteran of the outside world, while the vault dweller played by Ella Purnell will be the more naive but human of the two.
Jonathan Nolan Values the Freedom the Games Offered Players
One of the core aspects of Fallout is the ability to play as you choose. Whether you want to be a noble crusader or a cutthroat is entirely up to you. Nolan wanted this freedom to be reflected in his TV series as well. It’s possible that restricting himself to adapting one of the games’ stories would go against the ethos of forging your path.
The interview touched on how The Last of Us raised the bar for live action adaptations. Nolan said he was very happy with how that series performed and what it meant for live actions across the board, and it helped motivate the team even more to deliver something phenomenal.
One thing to be noted is that Nolan does not see himself switching the cast around every season. An anthology series can sound great on paper, but the logistics are much harder to figure out, and he doesn’t want to leave a good cast of actors.
Are you excited for the launch of the first season on Prime Video? Let us know if you’re going to be binging it on release!
