A highly anticipated video game adaptation on Netflix just got a little bit closer with some big casting news. In 2020, Netflix announced a partnership with video game company Ubisoft to adapt some of its games. Perhaps the most anticipated of them all has been Assassin's Creed. While the series was confirmed to be in development, there have been few details since then. However, things are moving forward with the show's first casting announcement.
Deadline reports that Toby Wallace has been cast as one of the co-leads in the series. Wallace is an up-and-coming actor who has already appeared in some supporting roles in star-studded projects, like The Bikeriders alongside Tom Hardy and Austin Butler, and Eden with Jude Law and Sydney Sweeney. Wallace will also appear in the third season of Euphoria.
Assassin's Creed is a video game franchise centered around a long battle being fought by two opposing shadowy organizations of warriors. The games take players into various historical events, from Ancient Greece to the French Revolution. While it is unknown the exact setting for the series when it begins, the show will reportedly film in Italy, which was a main setting for one of the games.
Television is ideal for an Assassin's Creed adaptation
Fans might remember that this is not the first attempt to adapt the beloved Assassin's Creed games. In 2016, a movie adaptation was released, directed by Justin Kurzel and starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard. Despite the talent involved, the movie was a critical and financial flop, ending the planned movie franchise.
While there are several reasons why the Assassin's Creed movie didn't work, one common complaint was that the movie didn't successfully take advantage of the potential of this world. However, that makes the television adaptation all the more exciting, as it serves as a much better platform to explore this story in a rich and exciting way.
The fun of the games is seeing the different historical events from a new perspective. That was difficult to do in one movie, and it was therefore limited in exploring different timelines. While the first season of the show will likely take place in one timeline as well, each season can take the viewers to a new era to tell a whole new story, just like with the games.
As movies still struggle to make great video game adaptations, television has proven much more reliable in this regard. Shows like The Last of Us and Fallout have been hits with fans and critics. Assassin's Creed could be the next great example of this and finally deliver the adaptation people have been waiting for.