Earlier today, it was announced that Antonio Banderas (ASSASSINS, THE SKIN I LIVE IN), Sophia Ali (TRUTH OR DARE, FAKING IT) and Tati Gabrielle (CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRIANA, THE EMOJI MOVIE) would be joining the cast of Sony's UNCHARTED, which is now set to be helmed by the eighth director to assume directorial duties for the project, Ruben Fleischer (VENOM, ZOMBIELAND: DOUBLE TAP).
The long-gestating project — which stars Marvel alum Tom Holland as explorer Nathan Drake, and Mark Wahlberg as Drake's partner in crime, Victor "Sully" Sullivan — has certainly seen its share of ups and downs during its arduous developmental process. Be that as it may, new remarks from Wahlberg have the movie sounding like it might all come together quite nicely, and that UNCHARTED could arrive as one of the next great big screen adventures.
Recently while talking with Collider's own Steve Weintraub about his upcoming Netflix action movie, SPENSER CONFIDENTIAL, Wahlberg described UNCHARTED as an "origin story" that harkens back to films like the Indiana Jones series, as well as THE THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR.
“I start filming in about two weeks time. It’s exciting because, without giving too much away, it’s more of an origin story. Meeting them, and Nathan becoming Nathan. Sully and him meeting, trying to not only get over on each other, but also starting to partner up and develop that relationship. It’ll be very cool. It’s the first time I’m in a movie that’s a movie. I felt like when I was reading it, I was reading Indiana Jones or Thomas Crown Affair. It’s got these great elements of these heist movies and adventure movies like I’ve never been a part of," said Wahlberg about what fans can expect when UNCHARTED comes barreling into theaters.
Whoa there, Wahlberg. I would be very careful about tossing the name Indiana Jones out into the ether, as that is a franchise that UNCHARTED can only hope to emulate. While I agree that Drake's adventures have often reminded me of Indy's onscreen adventures, I'd still be very heedful about poking that particular bear.
Created by Naughty Dog and published by PlayStation, the Uncharted video game series revolves around the globe-trotting adventures of Nathan Drake, an explorer who continuously finds himself at war with rival seekers of artifacts that, once acquired, could help shape the future of mankind in ways never though possible. Along his many adventures, Drake partners with a number of tomb raiders, each having a certain level of disdain for Drake and his ability to find trouble wherever possible.
Since doing the director shuffle a number of times, UNCHARTED now has a release date of March 5, 2020.