The idea of a video game "curse" when it comes to theatrical adaptations might be over. The JUMANJI movies have been crushing it at the box office. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG had a record-setting opening, while DETECTIVE PIKACHU opened up that universe to a larger, global audience.
The success looks to continue with Sony’s UNCHARTED, an adaptation of a story-heavy video game that already borrowed heavily from action franchises like INDIANA JONES and TOMB RAIDER (yet another video-game property). The UNCHARTED movie has been in various stages of development for some time now, but a handful of impressive casting decisions have pushed the film into production stages ahead of its announced July 16, 2021, release date.
Who will you see in UNCHARTED when it finally hits the big screen?
Tom Holland
The main character in the UNCHARTED series is Nathan Drake, a sarcastic and quippy treasure seeker who has been on his own, operating as a thief, since his teenage years. The game mostly shows Nathan as an adult (and fans wanted Nathan Fillion to play the part), but Sony signed Tom Holland to play the role, meaning this story will feature a younger Nathan who’s still, no doubt, on a globe-trotting adventure.
Mark Wahlberg
At one point, Wahlberg was being considered to play Nathan Drake. And that would have been fine. But he’s an even better choice to play Victor "Sully" Sullivan, an early mentor of Nathan who ends up becoming his partner in crime and adventure — but mostly, in thieving and archiving valuable treasures that the duo unearth around the globe.
Sophia Ali
There are three main female characters from the game that could show up in UNCHARTED, so we will see if Sophia Ali ends up playing Elena Fisher, Nadine Ross or Chloe Frazer — all fellow adventurers who sometimes compete against Nathan and Sully, and sometimes team up to get all of them out of a sticky situation. Ali is mostly known for "Grey’s Anatomy," but is getting more opportunities like this on the big screen.
Antonio Banderas
We don’t know who any of the other actors are playing in UNCHARTED. But we do know that Antonio Banderas is going to be in the film, and we are jumping to the conclusion that he’s probably being hired to play the villain. We imagine the casting could mirror what Javier Bardem brought to SKYFALL when he was chosen to play a Bond villain. Banderas would be a terrific "bad guy" choice.
UNCHARTED begins filming soon and will swing into theatres in the summer season of 2021. Check back for updates.
