Assassin's Creed with Michael Fassbender

speedboatchase

Love the series and this could push Fassbender up to the A-list:

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118056333

Michael Fassbender will star in and co-produce "Assassin's Creed," the bigscreen adaptation of Ubisoft's videogame franchise, through his DMC Film.

While Fassbender's profile has risen with roles in "X-Men: First Class," "Shame," "Haywire," "Prometheus," and will next be seen in "The Counselor" and "Twelve Years a Slave," thesp also has spent the past year developing films with Conor McCaughan. Together, they produced the short "Pitch Black Heist."

"Assassin's Creed" is the duo's most high-profile project, given that the game is Ubisoft's biggest franchise, selling over 30 million units since 2007. A third "Assassin's Creed" game bows Oct. 30 and is set during the American Revolution. First two take place during the Crusades and Renaissance.

Plot revolves around a man who learns his ancestors were trained assassins after he is kidnapped by a secret org with ties to the Knights Templar, and sent back in time to retrieve historical artifacts.

"Michael Fassbender was our first choice" to play the franchise's iconic hooded hero, said Jean-Julien Baronnet, CEO of Paris-based Ubisoft Motion Pictures. "Michael (Fassbender) is an extremely smart, talented, versatile and committed actor."

Last fall, Ubisoft was in talks with Sony to develop a series of "Assassin's" pics (Daily Variety, Oct. 20, 2011). But the companies have since put negotiations on hold.

Ubisoft execs now plan to stick to their initial plan and develop the film independently in order to maintain greater creative control. Last year, Ubisoft invested in launching UMP, headed by Baronnet, former CEO of Luc Besson's EuropaCorp, to adapt the company's games into films, TV shows and digital projects.

While Sony could still wind up distribing the films, UMP will package the project with a writer and director before resuming talks with the studio.

"We're open to re-discuss with the key studios once the production package is finalized," Baronnet told Variety.

Ubisoft also is looking to raise financing for the tentpole through foreign presales and co-production deals, which again could again involve Sony.

"Whatever the financial model, UMP will limit its risk investment," and will save on production costs by turning to its 26 in-house game studios like Hybride Technologies, to handle visual effects work, Baronnet said.

Ubisoft sees adaptations as a way to turn its games into larger brands that will get the titles in front of more consumers while creating lucrative new revenue sources for the company. One of its first projects is an animated TV series based on the "Raving Rabbids" franchise that will air on Nickelodeon. Ubisoft chief Yves Guillemot also wants to develop films for the games "Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell" and "Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon."

By controlling more of the creative through UMP, Ubisoft hopes it doesn't wind up with another "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time," adapted by Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer. Pic earned a disappointing $335 million worldwide, with just $91 million of that in the U.S. last year, ending any franchise dreams.

spankmaster2000

I'm actually quite ok with that.

Hasn't Fassbender / his company, announced a bunch of other films as well though? The Cuchulainn epic for example...

Mickeroo

Who's he going to play? Altair? Desmond? Ezio?

Don't think he'd suit any of them, he'd be better off playing a villain imo.

Lets hope they tackle the big ideas better than

Prometheus

niallon

I'd like to see him play Desmond and then under prosthetics play the ancestors. This could be very good though all in all

humanji

I always thought the main characters in the games were in their mid-20's.

Still, I like Fassbender and I'd trust him to do a good job whatever his role. But the history of bad game adaptations is long and sordid. I won't be holding out for a masterpiece, but it should be good fun.

JP Liz V1

humanji wrote: »

I always thought the main characters in the games were in their mid-20's.

Still, I like Fassbender and I'd trust him to do a good job whatever his role. But the history of bad game adaptations is long and sordid. I won't be holding out for a masterpiece, but it should be good fun.

I'm not familiar with the game but I would be weary of video game adaptations not great history so far

I hope it dont hurt Fassbender's career tbh

He has been very clever with his roles so far and was excellent in X-Men First Class

johnny_ultimate

I hope it's loyal to the series and has Michael Fassbender collecting a load of pointless flags for no apparent reason!

chin_grin

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

I hope it's loyal to the series and has Michael Fassbender collecting a load of pointless flags for no apparent reason!

I'd say the whole running time of the movie will be a woman approaching Fassbender begging for food/money.

jamezy

I really, REALLY hope who ever is involved will make a smart movie encompassing the smart historical background and the divergence and perception of morality aswell as the straight up great action that made Assassins Creed good in the first place.

What I (and I hope others agree) do not want a piece of **** movie (ie almost every other video game inspired film ever) that is aimed at what the perception of a "gamer" is: A 14 year old basement dweller who calls everyone homosexual slurs through their head set in the COD multiplayer.

PS I think a good director could bring a bit of... I'm not sure... Maturity maybe, to the movie (a la Brian Singer and X-Men)?

Gingervitis

My first reaction...What??

Michael Fassbender, certified cinema gold (see the one shining light out of Prometheus), plus computer game adaptation, certified cinema suicide (at least critically, or as something you'd want to be attached to) = ... what?

I'll admit the Assassins' Creed series has some interesting mythos (if pure hokum, the kind of conspiracy nonsense that I will undoubtedly eat up), but at the end of the day...computer games work because of the agency involved - you're making the story happen, and being challenged before being rewarded with said story. Seeing the story unfold on its own merits will come across as some Dan Brown/Minority Report mess.

Love the series, and can't wait for the third installment, but...I can only hope the fact that he's co producing it will allow some justice to be done. For now, my expectations will be comfortably low.

Daemos

Has there ever been a good film adaptation of a video game? Not to my mind

The problem with film adaptations is that they can never provide the interactivity of the game, no matter how many dimensions you throw at it. Games are immersive because of their gameplay, not the story. Uncharted 2 has been hailed as one of the best games of modern times, but if it were a film it would be one of those cr4p TV movies on SyFy. The story is nonsense - it's the game element that makes it a great game

This will, IMO, be absolutely terrible. I'm hoping to be proven wrong, but the history of game-to-film adaptations doesn't paint a pretty picture

Mickeroo

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

I hope it's loyal to the series and has Michael Fassbender collecting a load of pointless flags for no apparent reason!

Ah now johnny, they rectified that in the sequels.

It's pointless feathers now

:pac:

pixelburp

speedboatchase wrote: »

[...]
Ubisoft execs now plan to stick to their initial plan and develop the film independently in order to maintain greater creative control. Last year, Ubisoft invested in launching UMP, headed by Baronnet, former CEO of Luc Besson's EuropaCorp, to adapt the company's games into films, TV shows and digital projects.

[...]

The above is the one chink of light that this vehicle might actually become a competent videogame adaptation: with Ubisoft maintaining creative control of the property, there's less chance of a 3rd party mucking about with the source material so that can only be a good thing. Of course it does mean that if it still ends up a disaster, it'll all be on the heads of Ubisoft but if nothing else, it might create a precedent where games companies feel more confident to go it alone rather than get into bed with a studio.

Although it says a lot about the state of videogame adaptations that if it did turn out to be just competent and nothing else, it'd still be light-years ahead of the rest.

johnny_ultimate

The one thing that makes Assassin's Creed stand out above all others is its genuinely offbeat, unique and interesting settings. Even in the slightly lackluster first game, the gameplay and design failings could be partially forgiven due to the sheer uniqueness and ambition of the project. Luckily the subsequent games have radically improved, and this year's American Civil War entry looks nicely set to the invigorate a franchise that was threatening to become over-exposed through annual refinements. And the franchise consistently seems to be escaping the horrifically bland collectathons that were used to unconvincingly fluff up the running times by adding actual variety and stuff.

It, however, along with a handful of other examples like Bioshock, does have a captivating setting whose richness could be translated into cinema relatively convincingly by a talented director. Where the world of the Mushroom Kingdom could only ever be a convincing game, or how adapting a game like Max Payne is doomed to failure as it was simply riffing on cinema in the first place, Assassin's Creed clever subversion of its historical settings would not necessarily look ridiculous on the big screen. Add to that the potential for kinetic, extremely physical action alongside a narrative full of conspiracy and intrigue, and you have a franchise that might be a suitable fit for adaptation.

Then again, most of the above could be said for Prince of Persia, and that was a ****ing disaster.

I thought Prince of Persia was enjoyable enough, no masterpiece but a few laughs and good action, got what I wanted out of it.

spankmaster2000

MUCH more exciting news...(well, for me anyway!)


http://www.slashfilm.com/deus-ex-move-game-console-big-screen-cbs-films/

ziedth

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=75056315&postcount=12

Ahem :pac:

Potential-Monke

Update

Sony on board á lá New Regency, UMP retaining primary creative input, Fassbender playing Desmond and Altair (now we know it will be following the game series, and not making a new character), plus co-producing and partially funding, and already talks of creating ACII & III, again with Fassbender playing the roles of Ezio and Connor).

According to the person who wrote that article (and in their opinion), it will probably be a 2015 release (Fassbender working on the X-Men: First Class sequel until near the end of 2013).

Also, for anyone who read the first post, the character (Desmond) is not sent back in time, he is using a device to access genetic memory of his ancestors.

iColdFusion

Hmmm, its the mad parkour skills that make the games so much fun and Fassbender would really need to become an expert to be a convincing Altair, CGI only gets you so far.

JP Liz V1

http://deadline.com/2015/02/marion-cotillard-assassins-creed-michael-fassbender-ubisoft-macbeth-1201373027/


Production will begin in early fall for a December 21, 2016 release

Adamantium

Will this and The Last of Us be the first genuinely great movies based on videogames?

Assassins Creed is the most lethargic wasted potential of a game series I have ever known, Lord knows the movie might inspire them to reboot the game series and do it right.

Potential-Monke

Adamantium wrote: »

Will this and The Last of Us be the first genuinely great movies based on videogames?

Assassins Creed is the most lethargic wasted potential of a game series I have ever known, Lord knows the movie might inspire them to reboot the game series and do it right.

All they need to do is release a full game set in feudal Japan. It's what the fans have been calling out for since AC II! Although, i wouldn't say no to another Black Flag!

And i can't wait for this movie, they have the talent in Fassbender, and the writers for the games are heavily involved, so lets just hope they do the series, and the story, justice!

nullzero

So will this film be two hours of Michael fassbender grabbing onto ledges he didn't mean to grab onto and kick flipping himself onto the swords of incoming guards that he's trying to run away from?

constitutionus

Daemos wrote: »

Has there ever been a good film adaptation of a video game? Not to my mind

The problem with film adaptations is that they can never provide the interactivity of the game, no matter how many dimensions you throw at it. Games are immersive because of their gameplay, not the story. Uncharted 2 has been hailed as one of the best games of modern times, but if it were a film it would be one of those cr4p TV movies on SyFy. The story is nonsense - it's the game element that makes it a great game

This will, IMO, be absolutely terrible. I'm hoping to be proven wrong, but the history of game-to-film adaptations doesn't paint a pretty picture

i'd give credit to "silent hill" for TRYING. using the music from the game certainly helped with the atmosphere and there was some genuinely distubing stuff in it as well. all in all i'd say its the best so far.

(though it did bug me that they switched it to the ma looking instead of the da. i'dve prefered a whole film with sean bean)

on OP.

This is fine with me. fassbenders looks the part IMO an i think theres the scope here to do something visually beautiful as well as dramatically engaging.

its right up my street anyway, so ill check it out.

JP Liz V1

http://www.ew.com/article/2015/05/01/assassins-creed-michael-fassbender-September


Filming starts in September

EoinMcLovin

First look of Fassbender

Meet Michael Fassbender as Callum Lynch in Assassin’s Creed.


Fassbender’s character was created specifically for the film version. (The movie isn’t retelling any of the existing Creed games, but rather introducing new characters into the same world.)

Lynch discovers he is a descendant of the secret Assassins society through unlocked genetic memories that allow him to relive the adventures of his ancestor, Aguilar, in 15th Century Spain. After gaining incredible knowledge and skills he’s poised to take on the oppressive Knights Templar in the present day.

pmasterson95

Not getting much of a rest after Apocalypse filming ended.

Potential-Monke

Brendan Gleeson and Jeremy Irons join cast!

Jeremy Iron and Brendan Gleeson have joined the cast of Assassin’s Creed, Deadline reports. They’ll join Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard in the Justin Kurzel directed film.

Irons will play the father of Cotillard’s character, while Gleeson will be the father of Fassbender’s Assassin, Callum Lynch.

Fans will recognize Irons as the latest film incarnation of Alfred Pennyworth in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Patrick Gleason appeared in Edge of Tomorrow.

Based on the popular Ubisoft videogames franchise, Assassin’s Creed will follow Lynch as he unlocks his genetic memories to gain the skills and knowledge needed to battle the Templars in the modern era.

Check out when this Assassin’s Creed and other movies are coming out in Comic

Tony EH

Adamantium wrote: »

Will this and The Last of Us be the first genuinely great movies based on videogames?

Assassins Creed is the most lethargic wasted potential of a game series I have ever known, Lord knows the movie might inspire them to reboot the game series and do it right.

Always thought 'Assassin's Creed' was pants, but 'The Last of Us' already has the script written for it, practically.

In the right hands, that would make a brilliant film.

Exclamation Marc

First look at Fassbender in costume on set.

Agent Coulson

http://variety.com/2015/film/news/assassins-creed-photo-michael-fassbender-new-videogame-movie-1201668111/

Exclamation Marc

http://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/exclusive-first-look-michael-fassbender-assassin-creed/

FortuneChip

Not overly impressed to be honest, looks every bit like a generic computer game crossover...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfJVoF5ko1Y

Mr E

I think it looks OK. Good production values (compared to an Uwe Boll movie for example).

The first line of the OP made me smile. Shows how long this movie has been in production.

"Love the series and this could push Fassbender up to the A-list"

Penn

"Welcome to the Spanish Inquisition"

I didn't expect that.

JohnFalstaff

Penn wrote: »

"Welcome to the Spanish Inquisition"

I didn't expect that.

Nobody expected that.

maximoose

I had no hopes at all for this, but I actually think it looks alright! Looks like a pretty good realisation of the game world.

That song choice was brutal though.

pixelburp

Looks all right, there's nothing special about the trailer to mark it as one to watch - could be a case of simply being OK and too average to mark it as anything special in any direction. Even spectacular failures can be fun to watch. This looks ... competent.

Mind you, hard to think who this film is for really. Is Assassins Creed much of a franchise even within the gaming world that fans exist in number & might themselves be giddy to see an adaptation?

Osmosis Jones

I actually think this would have had a bigger audience with fans of the game a couple years ago, feel like they've lost a fair bit of goodwill since then. I suppose someone like Fassbender will draw crowds, at least it's not based on a character from one of the games, they're telling their own story in this universe.

maximoose

It had a fairly massive gaming fanbase yeah but the story slowly moved into batshît crazy territory, and the last 2 efforts were pretty broken games and did a bit of damage to the name.

Osmosis Jones

Wish they didn't bother with the animus aspect, it's far too convoluted for their own good and looks just as boring in the trailer as it is in the games.

Duggy747

It does looks well produced but that's a pretty bland trailer brought down largely by that choice of music, makes it feel very mid-2000s.

The franchise has had it's name dragged through the mud too much at this stage so will be interesting to see how this will go down.

That being said, video game movies have an extremely low bar. Could this be the one that ushers us into the new age of video game crossover movies? :pac:

Penn

My only real complaint about the trailer was the awful giant robot claw that grabs him. Just feels like a way of screaming "THE PRESENT DAY STUFF IS COOL TOO!"

Grayditch

That Kanye West song is such a banger.

Riesen_Meal

My 12 year old is going to lose his mind when I show him this later!

Falthyron

Here is the real version of the trailer...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPtgtMoggzg

Mickeroo

Doesn't look great, about the same level as the Prince of Persia film I reckon which was reasonably enjoyable but pretty forgettable.

paul68

I enjoyed the playing the game for the xbox, i reckon the film will be decent michael fassbender is a top actor

Some one needs to warn Ubisoft films need to be finished before release and can't be patched

Music was a terrible choice, no excuse for it

Part of the trailer looked heavily CGI'd which I'm sure won't be an issue on release .... I hope. Other than that I thought it looked ok. Made me ask myself why the setting was never used in the games, as the spanish inquisition would be an obvious tie in to the Ezio trilogy given the time period, though maybe they did do something with it and I've just forgotten, old age sucks

EDIT: Quick check tells me they did do a Spanish Inquisition angle with Ezio in a DS and iOS title

sheep?

Falthyron wrote: »

Here is the real version of the trailer...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPtgtMoggzg

It's amazing the difference music (or lack of) makes to moving image.

nix

slow mo jumps in abundance, exactly how i envisioned it