Tom Holland’s live-actionUnchartedmovie leaves out a vital part of the source material’s lore, butit’s not too late forUncharted 2to rectify the mistake. There were severaldifferences between 2022’sUnchartedand the gamesthat inspired it, which led to mixed reviews despite the project being incredibly profitable. The adaptation failed to honor many parts of the source material, going as far as to write an original storyline rather than recreating one of the many established narratives from the game series.
AlthoughUncharted 2has yet to be fully confirmed, comments from certain members of the cast and crew suggest an announcement is inevitable. In addition,Mark Wahlberg’s report about being told to “start growing [his] mustache"is a strong indicator that the sequel’s script is not only potentially complete but is also much more faithful to the games. If so,the speculative sequel has the chance to introduce some very important parts of theUnchartedfranchise’s worldbuildingthat the 2022 effort refused to acknowledge.
Tom Holland’s Uncharted Ignored The Games' Supernatural Elements
The 2022 Uncharted movie failed to include any of the monsters from the source material
From the very firstUnchartedgame, the franchise made a statement that it was following much more than its competitors' action/adventure genre label. Instead,2007’sUncharted: Drake’s Fortunemade the decision to include zombiesin a shock twist toward the end of the story. Later installments also brought more monsters into the fold. Similar properties, likeIndiana JonesandTomb Raider, had flourished when embracing the supernatural, so it’s perhaps not that surprising thatUnchartedwould do so too. What’s a little confusing is the fact that 2022’s movie completely omitted this particular facet.
Holland’sUnchartedmade itself an incredibly grounded counterpart to the games by instead choosing to turn away from the existence of zombies.
Holland’sUnchartedmade itself an incredibly grounded counterpart to the games by instead choosing to turn away from the existence of zombies and other monsters in the new branch of the franchise. The undead could still technically exist within the world of the movies, but not showing them in the first installment suggests the live-action adaptation doesn’t plan to include this more fantastical element of theUnchartedformula.Only time will tell ifUncharted 2will alter course.
How Uncharted 2 Can Bring In The Games' Supernatural Twists After A Grounded First Movie
The Uncharted Games give the upcoming sequel a brilliant compromise
It’s not too late for Holland’s Nathan “Nate” Drake and Wahlberg’s Victor “Sully” Sullivan to encounter the nightmarish villains first witnessed in the source material. That being said, the movie is a slightly more glossy version of the story being told in the video games. As such, if the supernatural parts of the franchise are to work their way into the movies, Sony will need to get creative.Suddenly adding zombies to the mix could get a little wild. Thankfully, the later games have already provided a perfect middle ground.
The supernatural parts of the formula started to fade as theUnchartedgames went on. Instead of Nate running into genuine monsters like the zombies from the first game, they ended up being people in costumes.
The supernatural parts of the formula started to fade as theUnchartedgames went on. Instead of Nate running into genuine monsters like the zombies from the first game, they ended up being people in costumes. Even later than that, they teased the comeback of actual fantastical beasts only for them to turn out to be Nate’s hallucinations. If the movies are cautious about dipping into the world of the supernatural, then misdirects such as those used in the games could be a brilliant way of still including versions of the ghastly villains.
Why Uncharted 2 & Beyond May Continue To Intentionally Avoid Monsters
There’s another Naughty Dog adaptation that’s already very monster-focused
There are two very salient reasons whyUncharted 2and other potential movie sequels may outright refuse to include supernatural beings. The first is strictly from a business perspective. Making a profitable movie isn’t always a sure thing. Of course, having big names like Holland Walhberg involved certainly helps, but it still doesn’t guarantee a film will make money. Sony managed to make anUnchartedadaptation that, on a budget of around $120m, made (according toBox Office Mojo) over $407m. So,straying from an approach that’s already proven successful could be seen as an unnecessary risk.
This 27-Year-Old Video Game Franchise Is Perfect For A Movie After Uncharted’s $407M Success
2022’s Uncharted movie is based on a video game franchise of the same name, and its success suggests another Naughty Dog series should be adapted.
The other reason could relate to another live-action adaptation made using source material from the same game studio asUncharted. Naughty Dog, the company responsible for making theUnchartedgames, also madeThe Last of Us. The latter is much more heavily associated with the presence of the undead. As such, adding them into theUnchartedmovies could make both projects seem too similar. In short, theUnchartedmovies are easier to separate fromThe Last of Usthe way they currently are.
Uncharted
TheUnchartedfranchise is a popular action-adventure series based on the video game franchise developed by Naughty Dog. The film adaptation, starring Tom Holland as Nathan Drake and Mark Wahlberg as Victor “Sully” Sullivan, brings the treasure-hunting adventures to life with globe-trotting action, mystery, and intense stunts. Released in 2022, the filmUnchartedserves as an origin story for Nathan Drake, following his journey from a street-smart bartender to an emerging treasure hunter. A sequel is in development, building theUnchartedmovie franchise into an action-packed cinematic universe.
