Uncharted: Drake's Fortune movie underway at Columbia Pictures

by Christopher Grant on Jun 26th 2009 10:18AM

It's been nearly a year, but remember when we broke the news that pirate-murdering simulator and half-tuck trendsetter Uncharted was making its way from the wilds of the video game jungle to the majesty of the silver screen? Looks like our original source was dead-on: Atlas Entertainment had optioned the rights for the title last year and now, with a script by Kyle Ward of "Kane & Lynch" and "Hitman 2" game-to-not-yet-movie fame – they've found a partner in Columbia Pictures.

For those of you not well versed in the corporate parentage of movie studios (Gulf + Western who?) we'll remind you: Columbia Pictures is part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group. And the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group is, in turn, a part of Sony Pictures Entertainment. And you'll never guess who owns ... oh, you already guessed? So, yeah, through a labyrinth of corporate relationships, Sony is making a movie based on a game made by a studio owned by Sony.

Regardless, The Hollywood Reporter, uh ... reports that the movie follows the plot of the first game – the project is titled Uncharted: Drake's Fortune – wherein "a treasure hunter named Nate Drake ... believes he has learned the whereabouts of El Dorado, the fabled South American golden city, from a cursed golden statue." Oh, and what about that other part of the first game? "The search becomes competitive when a rival hunter joins the fray, then is racheted up several notches when creatures -- actually mutated descendants of Spaniards and Nazis -- begin attacking those hoping to learn the treasure's true secrets."

Creatures confirmed.

[via @geoffkeighley]

Source

Tags: movies, Naughty-Dog, Uncharted, Uncharted-Drakes-Fortune

Reader Comments (98)

Coincidence? I think NOT!

lol thats what I was going to say

Nathan Fillion is the obvious choice.

This actually has a chance of being successful because the first game was so well written and well acted.

I considered Max Payne to be "well written" in the sense that I love cheesy gritty noir, and the movie offered literally none of that. Like, how hard is it to copy cheesy noir? Not ONE inner monologue in the whole bloody film!

*ahem* So my point is, it's a game to movie film...the odds are against it.

Since the beginning, I've been thinking "Nathan Fillion!" every time I saw Nate Drake. The dude even /sounds/ like him. Obvious casting choice for a film, indeed.

yeah, he's perfect for the role. have you guys seen him in the new series "Castle"?

I thought of David Boreanaz my first time from the tv series Bones... =/
Guess I'm the only one... =(

Well, he's the obvious second choice yeah... seeing as the game already had perfect casting to begin with.

Nathan Fillion would be almost perfect. Let's just hope the movie doesn't suck and end up going direct to video.

I'd much rather have the original voice actors/motion capture people to do their characters in the movie. They are the voice of the characters and they even resemble the characters.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2009/06/16/meet-nathan-drake-uncharted-2s-nolan-north/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2009/06/17/meet-the-women-of-uncharted-2-among-thieves/

..................Fuck.

...you!

If you like to count
Dots as syllables, then you
Are still short two lines

What is with joystiq
commenters and their haiku
getting annoying

I hope they use the original voice actor - doesn't look like him but he's young and fit enough to pull it off. Can't imagine anyone else really - same for Elena and Sully.

I correct myself - he does look like him (I only saw him before in that mo-cap suit and skull cap)

Emily Rose resembles Elena too.

http://www.hbo.com/johnfromcincinnati/img/cast/season1/character/cass.jpg

@Hyams
Indeed she does. I really hope they realize they don't have to cast the leads as they are already there.

*goes back to pining for Uncharted 2.... http://www.gametrailers.com/video/extended-warzone-uncharted-2/49328

Even though the game is a big seller on PS3, it's nowhere near mainstream pop culture. Why make a movie about it?

because it can become mainstream culture, since it captured the essence of Indiana Jones better than the last Indiana Jones? Plus we won't have to see a 70 year old harrison Ford trying to battle Scientologist or whatever the hell Indy 4 was.

@Dethgar

Watch the cinematics 1-6 and you'll see why this would be an awesome movie. Here's the first link.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rh-sXAQaGw

Because uncharted already IS an action movie. the script is essentially written already. Just take out a few gunfights and treasure sequences and all the time you spend dying and the story is essentially a modern day indiana jones.

And unlike stuff like Halo and gears, you don't require much in the way of CGI or expensive effects since it is set in the real world.

Now of course we all know Nathan fillion won't be cast. That would make sense. Chances are we are going to be stuck with Shia leboef or Zak Efron or some other flavour of the month pretty boy actor.

Should only mainstream pop culture books be made into movies? If yes, then we never would have gotten Fight Club or No Country for Old Men.

Should only mainstream pop culture comic books be adapted into movies? If yes, then we never would have gotten Blade or Iron Man.

There are plenty of elements in Uncharted that can make a really fun movie and that is way more important than it's mainstream saturation point. Besides, provided they make a decent film, you can sell this to plenty of non-gamers as an Indiana Jones/Mummy type adventure movie.

The game was pretty much a movie already so why not?

The point I was trying to make was that mainstream pop games turned movies usually bomb, and bomb hardcore. I'm not implying that something derived from an ip that isn't in the mainstream should be avoided.

I will pass on the cinematics because I do plan to play the game once the price of the PS3 drops.

I'm not questioning making a movie about the game, just inquiring why they would be inclined to.

@dethgar

I totally understand what you are trying to say, but the PS fanboys can't see what you are trying to say because they are blinded by Japanese Sony infused proteins.

Drakes Fortune was a damn fine game for PS3 standards. It sold well for the PS3 but keep in mind that the PS3 is in third place therefore mainstream saturation for a PS3 game which is not even its number one title would fail to capture the imagination or excite the non gaming public.

Also as fun and fresh as the story seemed to us games, it heavily depended on a cliched rugged, butt kicking, archaeologist/slash treasure hunter storyline like Indian Jones. Hardly a ground breaking genre that would rile up the punditry or critics.

A God Of War movie is what we really want, neigh, demand!

That'd be rated 18 for sure...

I think you mean to say that a God of War movie SHOULD be rated R. But it would most definitely be PG-13. They always want that magical PG rating to maximize the audience/box office. God of War could be amazing if they did it 300 style with Zac Snyder or something, but I imagine the budget being massive.

Not to mention, a PG-13 rating would help cash in on all the adolescent boys playing the M-rated video game.

Zack Snyder + God of War = WIN

nah, the teens who play it (like me) can just get our 17+ year old friends to take us. so definitely rated R

Every minute spent playing Uncharted, I was imagining Nathan Fillion in the main role. MAKE IT SO!

Nathan Fillion would be the perfect choice!

Sadly, Fillion is not a very "marketable" actor. He definitely would be the PERFECT choice as Drake, but since this is potentially a new film franchise I'm sure the studios want to get as much star power as possible to get the movie off its feet.

Then again, the first Transformers didn't have many recognizable faces (Shia LaBeouf and Megan only after became popular) and that movie made RIDICULOUS amounts of money--especially for a new franchise.

So I hope Columbia gets the message about Nathan Fillion, but it doesn't seem likely.

the stupid creatures ruined an otherwise perfect game. i was so disappointed when they entered the story.

I find it interesting everyone hates them. I never got to experience the twist like most people, because PS3fanboy didn't give a spoiler warning before spoiling the twist in their review. I knew they were coming from the beginning, so I neither hated nor loved them - I nothing'd them.

@Brett

I hear you; and yes, one could argue that the story jumped the shark but as the whole game was a nod to the classic serial adventure films it's kind of a genre convention.

Even Indy encountered the supernatural at the end of Raiders and no one seems to complain about that. (We don't speak of Indy after Temple of Doom)

I liked them. They were like the ghosts coming out of the Ark at the end of Raiders: the really supernatural thing that pushed the story over the edge from plain old action to retro action serial. They weren't perfect, but things got intense and it was kind of fun to run around waving a machine gun instead of ducking all the time.

@Trev - great minds think alike. The mutated spaniards/nazis were a good change of pace gameplay wise. My only real complaint was the jetski sections where you couldn't really move and shoot - and who the hell put all those explosive barrels in the river?

I still want my money back for Indy 4 since I'll never got those two hours back. Conclusive proof that George Lucas should never be involved in a film again. Ever.

Whoa! Ontoglory: You really didn't like The Last Crusade? I thought it was much better than Temple of Doom.

@Anthonyjh

No, hated it. I know that it is many people's favorite but it just went so campy. Too much forced humor. The stupid beach scene w/the umbrella and "the pen is mightier than the sword". I want to punch his stupid face every time I hear that line.

But Last Crusade is a towering achievement of cinema compared to Kingdom. I honestly can't believe they let that tripe into theaters. CG monkeys? Swinging fast enough to catch up to speeding cars? The fridge? The dumb nazi with a sword villian?

Indy was raped right in front of my eyes....I expect a full federal idictment of George Lucas

This would be what "The Mummy 3" wasn't.

Pure Fun.

Phew now I dont have to buy the first game

No no, you still have to buy it.

If you haven't played it your life is empty and devoid of joy unbeknownst to you.

Play it - and all your wildest dreams will come true.

I will remain hopeful that this actually turns out to be a good movie. But let's not ignore the elephant in the room, a video game to movie adaptation is almost never good. In fact, I don't know why I say "almost" since no really video game movie immediately comes to mind. Especially if it's from the same individual who penned the Hitman movie.

*no really good video game movie

just be glad Sony is doing it and not Fox

Jack: Silent Hill wasn't great, but it was a really good movie. Imho, the only good video game movie. Sure, it sucks that they changed some details of the story, namely the mother being sort of Harry Mason instead of the father, but almost all movies change some details of the source material. Btw, Nathan Fillon HAS to be Nate. He looks older than Nate, but the most important traits of the character- the swagger, attitude, confidence, personality, and wittiness is already there in Fillon. He doesn't need to force this character as he's already Nate more or less.

Jack.....I take it you never saw a little classic known as Super Mario Brothers.....wait......sorry, you were right.

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Uncharted: Drake's Fortune movie underway at Columbia Pictures

Reader Comments (98)

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