Assassin's Creed brand manager Azaizia Aymar discusses the upcoming Assassin's Creed film adaptation, claiming that it will be a 'milestone movie' for game adaptations.
There is no shortage of bad video game movies. In fact, most video game movies are critically panned, and while some manage to post big numbers, many are box office bombs as well. After an endless stream of disappointing video game film adaptations, it's hard to blame gamers for assuming the worst whenever another video game movie is on deck, but Ubisoft is convinced that the upcoming Assassin's Creed movie will change all of that.
"I really think it's going to be a milestone movie. It's going to be the very first time that a video game studio creative works with movie creatives altogether to share a vision and give them the tool to express themselves, rather than have an adaptation. There's going to be a 'before and after' Assassin's Creed movie for sure."
Assassin's Creed brand manager Azaizia Aymar made this bold claim while speaking with Xbox's Major Nelson during a Facebook livestream. The Assassin's Creed movie's stars, Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Jeremy Irons, and Michael K. Williams, were also on hand for the stream, in addition to film director Justin Kurzel.
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Video game fans may be eager to trust Aymar's enthusiasm, but his comments are not exactly true. Aymar mistakeningly claims that the Assassin's Creed movie marks the first time a video game studio is actively working with film creatives to make a movie, which he presents as one of the reasons why it will succeed where others have failed. However, this past year's Ratchet & Clank movie was made as a collaboration between Insomniac Games and the filmmakers, with Insomniac going as far as to reboot the video game series to match the film's story. Despite this collaboration, Ratchet & Clank bombed at the box office, and also garnered far more negative reviews than positive ones.
Even if the Assassin's Creed movie is a high quality film, which it very well may be, it still needs to be a financial success if it's going to be the "milestone movie" that clears video game film adaptations of their stigma. Unfortunately for Ubisoft, Assassin's Creed is going to have stiff competition at the box office, facing off against the second week of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, not to mention going head-to-head with Passengers, which features Hollywood megastars Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt.
While the odds may be stacked against the Assassin's Creed movie, it does appear as though the filmmakers and Ubisoft are genuinely passionate about the project, which could go a long way in ensuring that it meets expectations. While some fans may be worried that star Michael Fassbender didn't play the games before joining the project, and others are concerned at its focus on present day over the past, they should rest assured knowing that the people behind the film seem to be confident in its potential to break the video game movie mold.
The Assassin's Creed movie premieres in theaters on December 21st, 2016.