Opening up a wealth of rich fiction, it’s fair to say that Michael Fassbender and director Justin Kurzel uncovered a goldmine upon signing on for Ubisoft Motion Pictures’ live-action Assassin’s Creed movie.
Inspired by a video game franchise celebrated for its ability to hop between one era to the next, aided by the bleeding-edge Animus technology, both Fassbender and Kurzel have gained access to a fairly flexible template. And while much of December’s budding franchise starter is set against the Spanish Inquisition – historical scenes that will be in Spanish, but more on that later – director and star have each entertained the idea of shifting into a new epoch altogether for the yet-to-be-confirmed sequel.
Per Total Film, Kurzel revealed,
“We were talking about it the other day. If we could find a period that, again, doesn’t feel like it’s repeating the game. And then you’ve got to think about how Michael would fit within that period and time. You really can create a whole new palette for the next film. The war between the Templars and the Assassins can be flipped and changed, so it provides some pretty unique takes on where you could take the story.”
Though it may be seen as wishful thinking – cast your mind back to early conversations regarding Warcraft‘s trilogy plans – there is metric ton of potential bubbling beneath the hood of Assassin’s Creed. Not only has Kurzel enlisted a bona fide A-lister in Fassbender, but he’s got an equally talented ensemble coupled with a commitment to practical effects that really lends a sense of heritage to Ubisoft’s video game movie. In fact, this strategy extends to the historical scenes, too, all of which will be in Spanish.
“I just love the fact [production company] New Regency embraced it. We did play around with English as well, but it was really obvious what you wanted as soon as you went back and started speaking beautiful Spanish. It really adds an exoticness and richness to the film.”
Assassin’s Creed dives into theaters on December 21, when Kurzel’s historical epic will be opening against Sony’s tentpole sci-fi movie Passengers. Who will emerge victorious? We’ll find out in a few months’ time.
