Following in the footsteps of games like Uncharted, the Borderlands franchise is set to receive its first movie adaptation. First announced in 2015, the production of the movie finally commenced in April this year, and was announced to have wrapped up in June. Fans have yet to receive a release date for the Borderlands movie, but the official Twitter account only revealing that it would be hitting theaters this century. However, Randy Pitchford has said "post-production is going to be substantial," meaning a release looks some way off.
Despite the lack of a trailer or release date for Borderlands, plenty is known about the film, including much of its casting. Eli Roth is directing the Borderlands movie, most famed for horror movies such as Hostel and Cabin Fever, while Chernobyl mini-series writer and producer Craig Mazin is Borderlands' writer. As for confirmed characters, notable inclusions are Cate Blanchett as Lilith, Kevin Hart as Roland, Florian Munteanu as Krieg, Ariana Greenblatt as Tiny Tina, and Jack Black as Claptrap. There will be plenty of familiar characters featured in the Borderlands movie, which may suggest the movie could have an impact on Borderlands 4.
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While neither Krieg nor Tiny Tina have taken too significant of a role in the mainline games as of yet, both are firm fan-favorites who could be set to feature more heavily in the future. Krieg received his own story DLC in Borderlands 3, while Tiny Tina is set to star in her very own game: Tiny Tina's Wonderlands. A pertinent question for the upcoming Borderlands movie is just how it will build upon the duo's existing characterization, or how it could even set the pair up to take starring roles in Borderlands 4.
With big things set to come for the Borderlands franchise, the Crimson Raiders will need all the help they can get. While the Borderlands movie is not considered to be in the same universe as the games, it will remain faithful to the existing Borderlands characters. This could mean that any way the duo's characterization is built upon could have an impact on the main games. Each of these characters holds unique attributes which could help with the Crimson Raiders' impending war, and each is a good candidate to step into a larger role.
The final words of the Watcher before it seemingly disappears from the franchise are, "War is coming, and you will need all the Vault Hunters you can get." The war was not the main story of Borderlands 3, so it remains one of the biggest unanswered questions of the Borderlands franchise. The war was established as a big world-ending event at the end of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, but it had to be put on the backburner to deal with the Calypso Twins. In fact, in the opening of the game it is revealed that the Crimson Raiders were recruiting, presumably for this war, before the Calypso Twins made themselves known.
While the Borderlands movie can't set up the story of Borderlands 4 due to it not being in the same universe as the games, it could provide more details. The movie need not be canon in order to further explain key context. If the characters are all the same as in the games as has been suggested, the Watcher and its vague warning could be further explored. The Watcher itself is still very much a mystery to Borderlands fans. Without even touching on the warning it posed, answers to key questions such as its motive for helping the Crimson Raiders and exactly where it came from would be valuable.
The Borderlands movie is in the works.
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