A Borderlands movie has been in the works since early 2015. Seen as a possible ‘tentpole feature’ by the struggling studio Lionsgate (i.e., a film big enough to bolster Lionsgate’s failing finances), the big-screen adaptation of the 2009 game spent a few years in development hell before it was revealed in 2020 that Chernobyl writer Craig Mazin had been hired to pen the script and long-time horror auteur Eli Roth had signed on to direct. After a few more months of silence (most likely due to the disruptive impact of COVID-19), it was revealed that Hollywood mega-stars Cate Blanchett and Kevin Hart had signed on to feature as Lilith and Roland, respectively
On the surface, each of these announcements probably seems positive: a decent studio financing the film? A dependable writer/director duo leading the adaption? Talented, bankable names starring in the feature? Ostensibly, this Borderlands movie looks well placed to meet high expectations, both critically and commercially; it should have all the necessary ingredients to succeed. However, once fans began considering the actual ramifications of these decisions, an upsetting yet unavoidable conclusion presented itself: the Borderlands movie could end up being really bad.
For starters, why is Lionsgate even adapting Borderlands into a movie? While there has been a veritable renaissance of videogame-film adaptations lately, such as 2020’s Sonic the Hedgehog or 2019’s Detective Pikachu, some games lend themselves more towards adaptation than others. Take the upcoming The Last of Us mini-series (also written Mazin) and 2021’s Uncharted prequel starring Tom Holland. Stylistically, these games are centered around strong, cinematic narratives – the games themselves are really just immersive storytelling, making them easy to convert into series/films. Conversely, for an open-world FPS game like Borderlands, there’s no easy way to accurately translate what made that game special into a film. The chaotic gun choices, the unfettered exploration, the role-playing aspects; everything that made the game special is hard to turn into a film. To put it simply, very few players are enjoying Borderlands for its plot.
Apparently, that’s a good thing, because the adaptation reportedly isn’t using the plot much at all. Around the time Mazin and Roth signed on to helm the film, Full Circle Cinema revealed that the plot and characters of the film would only “vaguely” resemble those from the games. Supposedly, the film would follow the “legendary thief” Lilith, who is tasked with rescuing the Atlas Corporation’s CEO’s daughter, Tiny Tina, assisted by Claptrap and a group of vault hunters. Once again, it would seem a Hollywood studio has bought an IP purely for the name recognition, gutting the memorable characters and plots and instituting its own paint-by-the numbers narrative instead. It’s what happened with 2017’s The Dark Tower and 2016’s Ratchet and Clank, and now it seems it’s happening to Borderlands.
Equally, what made the studio feel Roth was a good choice as director? Although the auteur is undoubtedly a legend within the body-horror community, making modern classics like 2005’s Hostel and 2013’s The Green Inferno, he has little-to-no experience handling action-comedy. Borderlands is famously centered around its off-kilter humor, choosing to evoke laughs instead of gasps. While Roth may be a deft-hand at abject violence, there’s no reason to believe he can offer giggles as well. In other words, Roth is great but he’s antithetical to the spirit of Borderlands – he shouldn’t have been chosen to direct this adaption.
Moreover, Kevin Hart shouldn’t have been chosen to play Roland. Although Hart has recently proven himself to be a bankable star, with spots in the Jumanji remakes and comedies like Ride Along (2014) and Get Hard (2015), he’s a weird choice for Roland. A Promethean Soldier, Roland is tall and serious – nothing like the wise-cracking, short Hart. For years now, fans have been clamoring for Terry Crews or Idris Elba to play this pivotal part, lending their intimidating strength to the role. Instead, they were given Hart. Really, the casting implies that the film is just hoping to recreate the success of 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle: they just want to pump out another lukewarm action-comedy ‘hybrid’ featuring Hart that makes money. If that is the case, anticipatory audiences can wave goodbye to their dreams of seeing an ambitious adaptation, and simply wait for a decent feature instead.
Nevertheless, there’s every chance this Borderlands movie could be good: Roth is a talented director, Hart is a charismatic actor, and the games have a lot of potential for adaption. However, given all the possible ways that this film could go wrong, it’s highly likely the movie will be at best ‘fine’, and at worst incredibly disappointing. Plus, they’re probably going to turn Claptrap into either the next Minions or the next Jar-Jar Binks; either way, not good.
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