Summary
2022’sUnchartedmovie strays pretty far from the source material, but the one time it actually makes an effort to be faithful to the game series, it’s frustratingly accurate - which is probably the thing that annoyed me most about the entire film. When I found out that Tom Holland had been chosen as the leader of theUnchartedcast, stepping into the shoes of the live-action Nathan “Nate” Drake, my first instinct was that Sony was making a prequel-style adaptation. When it turned out that wasn’t the case, my faith in the project dipped significantly.
I think Holland did an okay job inUncharted, but as a fan of the games, I found his age and his performance choices too far removed from the original character. As a result, I found the changes quite distracting. The same thing is true for Mark Wahlberg’s Victor “Sully” Sullivan. Sure,Wahlberg’s take on the character wasn’t anything like Sully from the games, but he did what he was asked to do well. Thechanges to theUnchartedgamemade the movie very middle-of-the-road for me, but there was at least one little spark of hope for the future.
Uncharted’s Shock Ending, Secret Characters & Sequel Setup
Tom Holland’s Uncharted explores greed and loyalty, but what does the Uncharted ending mean, and how does it set up more of Nathan Drake’s story?
Uncharted’s Post-Credits Scene With Nate & Sully Was Very Weird
Sony’s Uncharted adaptation briefly got things very right
I sat through the entire runtime of theUnchartedmovie trying to enjoy the adaptation for what it was. For the most part, I managed to find the good moments among all the underwhelming creative decisions. However, the post-credits scenes made my eyebrows shoot up. The final sequence of the movie with Nate and Sully looks as though it’s been lifted directly from the games.
Throughout the adaptation, Holland’s Drake had been wearing the simplistic but recognizable hero outfit from the game, whereas the wardrobe of Wahlberg’s Sully was nothing like his digital counterpart’s. In the post-credits scene, both movie versions of the protagonists had game-accurate costumes from a specific era in the game’s canon, complete withSully’s mustache now affixed to Mark Wahlberg’s face. While I found this really cool, it also confused me a whole lot.
The fourth game in the series has flashback sequences that show how Nate and Sully met, so they’re both much younger.
The outfits donned by the characters in the post-credits scene are fromUncharted 4: A Thief’s End.The fourth game in the series has flashback sequences that show how Nate and Sully met, so they’re both much younger. Compared with the rest of the movie, creating such a game-accurate moment in the present-day rather than in the past created a weird dissonance when it came to the choices made during the adaptation process.
2022’s Uncharted Should Have All Been Like The Post-Credits Scene
The live-action Uncharted movie should have catered to the age of its stars
One of my biggest gripes with theUnchartedmovie is that all the main characters are too young, but the weirdly awesome post-credits scene fixes that. Tom Holland may not look or act much like the games' present-day Nathan Drake, but he’d have been the perfect live-action casting for the younger Drake fromUncharted 4. The same is true of Mark Wahlberg as Sully.
One of my biggest gripes with theUnchartedmovie is that all the main characters are too young, but the weirdly awesome post-credits scene fixes that.
2022’sUnchartedalready doesn’t follow any of the main storylines from the source material, so there was no point in setting it in the present day. With Holland and Walhberg on board, I think focusing on events that took place before those in the games would have been a better approach - even if the movie universe canon was separate from that of the source material. I strongly believe this approach would have been much more effective than just aging down the cast in the present day.
Uncharted’s Post-Credits Scene Suggests Uncharted 2 Can Be Much Better
The unconfirmed (but likely) Uncharted sequel needs to keep a closer eye on the source material
Sony’s decision to adaptUnchartedwhile not really including any recognizable elements beyond character names is a decision that didn’t benefit the overall project. For fans of the games, like myself, it felt like a lot was missing. Inversely, those unfamiliar with the source material unknowingly missed out on what could have been a terrific action-adventure story playing out on the big screen. WhileUncharted 2isn’t officially confirmed,Wahlberg confirmed in an interview with Screen Rantthat the script is complete.
Uncharted 2: Confirmation & Everything We Know
With several video games, there’s a wealth of storytelling avenues for a sequel to explore. Here’s what we know about Uncharted 2.
Hopefully, the sequel draws on the effectiveness of the post-credits scene from the first movie. In the same Screen Rant interview,Wahlberg also teased that he’ll still be donning Sully’s signature mustachefrom the games. So, this gives me hope that Sony has penned the script forUncharted 2with a more watchful eye on the source material - even if it will still be weird seeing those versions of the characters in the present day rather than in the past. If so, the secondUnchartedmovie could be a huge improvement.
Uncharted
Cast
Uncharted is a prequel to the video games it takes its inspiration from, providing backstory into Nathan Drake and how he crossed paths with Victor “Sully” Sullivan, who becomes a friend and mentor.
