Prime Video’s Fallout adaptation is one of the biggest shows of 2024 so far, attracting more than 65 million viewers in its first 16 days on the streaming service. Given the pedigree of its cast and crew, that success isn’t especially surprising, other than the fact that it’s based on a video game franchise. That used to be a death sentence for a show or movie, but as we noted in our list of the 10 best video game movies and shows, that’s no longer the case.
Amazon has already confirmed that Fallout season 2 is on the way, but we’ll likely be waiting at least a year or two for it to arrive. In the meantime, here are four upcoming TV shows based on video games that have a chance to break containment and find a wider audience.
Among Us
CBS Eye Animation Productions is making an Among Us animated series alongside Innersloth, the studio behind the wildly popular party game. In the game, crewmates aboard a ship have to complete tasks before the imposter (or imposters) kill everyone.
Titmouse (Big Mouth, Metalocalypse) will handle the animation and Owen Dennis (Infinity Train, Regular Show) will serve as creator and executive producer. Innersloth has also been revealing the voice cast over time, which will include Randall Park, Ashley Johnson, Yvette Nicole Brown, Elijah Wood, Dan Stevens, Liv Hewson, Kimiko Glenn, Debra Wilson, Patton Oswalt, Wayne Knight, and Phil LaMarr. That’s quite a collection of talent.
We still don’t know where the show will be broadcast or streamed, but any adaptation based on a game this popular is sure to draw a crowd no matter where it ends up.
Assassin’s Creed
In 2020, Netflix announced that it was teaming up with Ubisoft for a live-action Assassin’s Creed series. A franchise as rich and expansive as Assassin’s Creed seems ripe for adaptation (even if the movie was a stinker), especially one that takes the time to explore the seriously complicated lore. But we’re unsure if this one will ever see the light of day.
Here’s what Peter Friedlander (former VP of Original Series, current Head of Scripted Series) of Netflix said when the series was announced in October 2020:
We’re excited to partner with Ubisoft and bring to life the rich, multilayered storytelling that Assassin’s Creed is beloved for. From its breathtaking historical worlds and massive global appeal as one of the best selling video game franchises of all time, we are committed to carefully crafting epic and thrilling entertainment based on this distinct IP and provide a deeper dive for fans and our members around the world to enjoy.
Unfortunately, that’s pretty much the last we heard of it. Nearly four years later, there has been no news about the directors, writers, cast, or crew for the project. If it ever enters production, I think it has a chance to be just as big of a success as Fallout, but that’s a big if. We’ll keep an eye out for news in the coming months just in case.
God of War
Sony Interactive Entertainment established PlayStation Productions in 2019, and the production company is off to a roaring start. Both Uncharted and the Gran Turismo movie made nine figures at the worldwide box office, while Peacock’s Twisted Metal and HBO’s The Last of Us streaming series have each been renewed for second seasons.
Up next is an adaptation of God of War—more specifically, the 2018 game, which picks up years after Kratos killed all the gods of Olympus in the original trilogy. After losing his wife, Kratos takes his son Atreus on a journey to scatter her ashes from the highest peak. Along the way, they meet colorful characters and battle dangerous mythological creatures.
Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby (Iron Man, Children of Men) wrote the script and Rafe Judkins (The Wheel of Time) will serve as showrunner. The God of War series doesn’t have a release date yet, but it will premiere on Prime Video whenever it’s ready.
“We are so proud and excited to be working with our friends at Amazon Studios and our partners at PlayStation Productions to adapt this beautiful and heartbreaking game into a premium live-action series,” said Katherine Pope, president of Sony Pictures Television Studios, in a press release last December. “Rafe, Mark and Hawk are crafting a transportive series that charts a path through the ancient mythological journey of Kratos.”
Horizon Zero Dawn
Another PlayStation Productions project, Horizon Zero Dawn is based on the game of the same name, set on a post-apocalyptic Earth where primitive tribes of human survivors live alongside dangerous mechanical beasts that emulate familiar animals.
Netflix announced that Steve Blackman (The Umbrella Academy) would write and produce the series back in August 2022, but we haven’t heard much else since. That said, Blackman and his production company Irish Cowboy are putting the finishing touches on The Umbrella Academy’s fourth and final season, which premieres on August 8, 2024.
Speaking with Netflix’s Tudum in 2022, Blackman shared the following about Horizon:
Horizon Zero Dawn is an exceptionally well-crafted game with wonderful characters not often seen in the rank-and-file of the gaming world. Guerrilla Games has created an incredibly lush and vivid world of man and machine who find themselves on a collision course to oblivion. Their salvation comes in the form of a young female warrior named Aloy, who has no idea she’s the key to saving the world. Suffice it to say, yes, Aloy will be a main character in our story. My writing partner on this, Michelle Lovretta, and I are thrilled to be able to expand this remarkable IP into a series for all types of viewers.
Expect to hear more about this project once The Umbrella Academy ends later this year.