Borderlands Film Will Be Separate From Borderlands Games

A fair amount of confusion has circulated following the various casting announcements for the Borderlands films, and recent updates like the one that reveals the inclusion of Deukalian Atlas (played by Édgar Ramirez), and the film synopsis shared to outlets like ComicBook. 

Looking to mitigate some of this confusion, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford tweeted some information about the Borderlands film and how it will be separate from the Borderlands games, though they will share some similarities. 

Borderlands Film Will Be Separate From Borderlands Games

The Borderlands film won’t directly follow the Borderlands games, but will instead be its own standalone entity. This was confirmed by Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford on social media in response to fan confusion over things like casting choices and characters confirmed for the film.

“To the interested: The Borderlands Cinematic Universe is not identical to the Borderlands Videogame Universe,” Pitchford explained. “We are authentic to characters, tone and style, but allow for independent storylines. The mediums are not the same, so the content should not be bound to the same rules.”

The Borderlands film wouldn’t be the first adaptation to deviate in the way it presents its story, for example, Netflix’s The Witcher follows the original book series rather than the games from CD Projekt Red.

Furthermore, it sounds like the Borderlands film will be more of a popcorn action flick. The Borderlands film will be directed by Eli Roth (Cabin Fever, Hostel) with writing from Craig Mazin (Chernobyl, The Last of Us TV series), and will star actors including:

• Cate Blanchett – Lilith 

• Jamie Lee Curtis – Tannis

• Kevin Hart – Roland 

• Jack Black – Claptrap 

• Ariana Greenblatt – Tiny Tina

• Édgar Ramirez – Atlas

• Florian Munteanu – Krieg

Haley Bennett will also play a new character with a connection to Lilith in the Borderlands film, though additional information about this character has yet to be revealed. Based on the synopsis, it’s possible Bennett could play the role of the missing girl “who may hold the key to unimaginable power” but that’s pure speculation on our part.

The Borderlands movie will be a Lionsgate film with filming set to begin soon in Budapest, Hungary.

Below, you’ll find the synopsis with text via ComicBook: 

“Lilith (Blanchett), an infamous outlaw with a mysterious past, reluctantly returns to her home planet of Pandora to find the missing daughter of the universe’s most powerful S.O.B., Atlas (Ramirez). Lilith forms an alliance with an unexpected team – Roland (Hart), a former elite mercenary, now desperate for redemption;

Tiny Tina (Greenblatt), a feral pre-teen demolitionist; Krieg (Munteanu), Tina’s musclebound, rhetorically challenged protector; Tannis (Curtis), the scientist with a tenuous grip on sanity; and Claptrap (Black), a persistently wiseass robot. These unlikely heroes must battle alien monsters and dangerous bandits to find and protect the missing girl, who may hold the key to unimaginable power.

The fate of the universe could be in their hands – but they’ll be fighting for something more: each other.”

So, what do you think of the approach that’s being taken with the Borderlands movie? Are you happy they won’t be following the story of the games, or are you concerned the movie may end up deviating too much from the Borderlands universe that people know and love?

Let us know on our social media channels including Facebook and Twitter, and stay tuned for more Borderlands updates here at Prima Games!

Related: Jack Black Will Voice Claptrap In Borderlands Movie