Summary

• The Fallout TV series showrunners did not require the cast to play the games, but said that they could if they wanted to.
• Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner's decision contrasts with The Last Of Us showrunners, who wanted the cast to avoid game influence.
• This decision represents another way in which Fallout and The Last of Us are different.

Two stars of the Fallout TV series explain why the series showrunners did not push them to play the games. An adaptation of the hit video game series of the same name, Fallout is an Prime Video series telling a story of a post-apocalyptic, nuclear war-torn Los Angeles in which citizens must live in underground bunkers to protect themselves. Fallout features a leading cast including Ella Purnell, Aaron Moten, Walton Goggins, and Moises Arias.

In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, Purnell and Moten explain why the Fallout show's showrunners did not force the cast to play the games. According to Purnell, she was told that she and the other cast “didn’t have to play the games, but [they] could if [they] wanted to.” Moten said that he was told a similar thing, but enjoyed “at least getting to watch other people play” on platforms like Twitch and YouTube. Purnell also elected to play the games. Check out the full quotes from Purnell and Moten below:

Purnell: I actually didn't know that. That's a really interesting fact. They told me, us maybe, that we didn't have to play the games, but we could if we wanted to. I did want to play them because I really wanted to get everything I could out of this moment. I wanted to obviously do justice to the source material. But I also knew my character was original. I had a bit of experience with that, with Arcane, like you said, knowing how to draw from the source material and how to also allow yourself the creative freedom to do your own thing. But I found it, if not helpful, then very fun.

Moten: Yeah. I was told the same thing. I enjoyed at least getting to watch other people play. I know Ella was the same. I mean, I got to hop on Twitch and YouTube just to watch the players who had hours invested into it but also to see the world and to see what certain environments would look like. Of course, with this amazing design team of our sets, Howard Cummings and his crew, it's just every day was amazing for us. It was all so detailed and vast. I mean, what a rich experience for an actor to get a true to that game playground to explore on.

How The Fallout Showrunners’ Policy Differs from Another Major Game Adaptation

Purnell points out a key element of the Fallout TV series in her statement that the main characters and story arc are original. That is, Prime Video’s Fallout is set in the same world as the games and does not directly adapt any of their plots. This is probably part of why Fallout showrunners Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner were fine if the cast played the Fallout games before starring in the show. Playing original characters, they would not have voice-acting performances to influence their portrayal.

Robertson-Dworet and Wagner’s decision differs strongly, however, from the advice set forth by the showrunners of another major adapted show: The Last Of Us. On an episode of The Last of Us podcast, game and TV series co-creator Neil Druckmann famously revealed that he did not want the main cast — especially Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey — to play the game before acting in the series. As his reasoning, Druckmann said that he wanted to make sure that they were not being asked “to replicate anything else” because “great performances come from the inside not from the outside.”

The Fallout showrunners’ vastly different approach represents just another way in which The Last of Us and Fallout are very different video game adaptations. By nature of them both being post-apocalyptic, the TV adaptations have often been compared in advance of Fallout’s release. However, in adapting an open-world, multi-part game franchise, Fallout is more of an homage to a universe than a direct adaptation of the games, as in the case of The Last of Us.

Fallout is set to premiere on Prime Video on Thursday, April 11.