Jonathan Nolan, executive producer of Amazon’s upcoming Fallout TV show, is pretty hopeful that the series will live up to the games. More than that, he seems to think that the series is a continuation of the games, if not an outright sequel. In a recent interview with Total Film, Nolan says it’s “almost like we’re Fallout 5.” That’s a lot of expectations to put on the show ahead of its April 12 release.
Bethesda’s Todd Howard is also on board with this canonical entry in the Fallout universe, but don’t expect all of your favorite locations and characters to make an appearance. This is an original story after all, and the team has had free reign to come up with something new. As Nolan puts it, “each of the games is a discrete story—different city, distinct protagonist—within the same mythology. Our series sits in relation to the games as the games sit in relation to each other.” SoNolan views the Fallout universe as an anthology of stories that tackle the same themes, rather than direct sequels. He expands on this idea by comparing it to his work on the Dark Knight trilogy of movies, directed by his brother Christopher Nolan, saying that Fallout, like Batman, has “no canonical version of it, so you’re free to invent your own.”
Co-showrunner Graham Wagner also discussed the new pressure the Fallout series faces after the success of HBO’s The Last of Us, which showed many viewers that you can actually make good video game adaptations. “In a perverse way, I wish there was more snobbery so that we could have been the first!” he shared with Total Film. The series, which stars the likes of Ella Purnnell (Yellowjackets), Walton Goggins (The Righteous Gemstones), and Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks) is set to air on Prime Video on April 12.
