The Borderlands video game franchise has been a smash success since its debut back in 2009.
And now, the saga of the magical Siren Lilith and her quest for galactic wealth is making its way to the big screen.
The film, directed by Hostel and Cabin Fever auteur Eli Roth, won’t premiere until August 9, but we have a good sense of the vibe thanks to a trailer released by Lionsgate today.
Fresh off her acclaimed performance in Tár, Cate Blanchett plays a very different kind of stoic badass in her first foray into the world of video game adaptations.
As Lilith, Blanchett heads up a band of interplanetary misfits determined to retrieve a massive treasure from a “dumpster fire of a world.”
The crew includes Kevin Hart as a soldier named Roland and Jamie Lee Curtis as the eccentric researcher Tannis.
Ariana Greenblatt, Florian Munteanu, Haley Bennett, and Edgar Ramirez round out the cast.
Borderlands is one of the year’s most anticipated releases due to the popularity of the games it’s based on.
With the superhero bubble seemingly well on its way to bursting, blockbuster franchises have not been easy to come by in recent years.
And Lionsgate is likely well aware that they might have the next big thing on their hands.
Video game adaptations were once a notoriously risky proposition, but the massive success of HBO’s The Last of Us series may have helped to usher in a new era.
The show proved that gamers might be more interested in fresh takes on their favorite stories than previously thought.
Just as importantly, it showed that non-gamers will tune in for game adaptations provided producers are willing to invest in top-tier talent.
And that, folks, is how you wind up with Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Jamie Lee Curtis in a movie based on a first-person shooter.
The decision to recruit Roth — who’s mostly known for tongue-in-cheek horror — over a director who’s more experienced in the world of heavily green-screened tentpole flicks suggests that Lionsgate has seen the writing on the wall and learned from the lessons of The Last of Us.
And the decision to approach the source material with a lighthearted, Guardians of the Galaxy-esque tone seems to indicate that the age of the brooding hero might be over, and blockbusters might once again prioritize levity over lore.
Borderlands could be making the ingenious move of combining the candy-coated aesthetic of Barbie with the built-in dude appeal of Oppenheimer to create a guaranteed smash for the summer of 2024.
What do you think? Does Borderlands have what it takes to take over the box office?
Hit the comments below to share your thoughts!
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Tyler Johnson is an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic and the other Mediavine O&O sites. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, cooking, and, of course, watching TV. You can Follow him on X and email him here at TV Fanatic.
