"It's kind of a fool's errand to try to figure out how to make people happy."
When it comes to translating well-established video game franchises into TV series, there are usually two audiences one has to keep in mind: newcomers and fans of the source material.
Back in 2023, when HBO shipped its adaptation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us, one of the show's highly praised aspects was its faithful retelling of the game's story, which pleased the series' existing fans and allowed the uninitiated to fully understand what The Last of Us was about.
Sadly, it recently came to light that the creators of Amazon's upcoming Fallout TV show have seemingly opted for a different approach and didn't put appeasing the franchise's dedicated fanbase as one of their priorities.
As reported by T3, the director of the Fallout TV series, Jonathan Nolan, dismissed the notion of catering to fans as a "fool's errand", advocating instead for prioritizing personal happiness over attempting to understand and fulfill the desires of others. "It's kind of a fool's errand to try to figure out how to make [other] people happy. You've got to make yourself happy. And I've made myself very happy with the show," Nolan said during a press event.
In what seems to be an attempt to avoid potential criticism, Nolan further added that he is something of a Fallout fan himself, having spent nearly a year playing the "best" installment in the series: Fallout 3. "It started, for me, with Fallout 3, which devoured about a year of my life. I was an aspiring young writer at that point, and it almost derailed my entire career," the director pointed out.
"It's such a rare and unbelievable thing that I've gotten to do twice in my career, to take something that you love and get a chance to play in that universe, to create your own version," said Nolan. "The first go-round for me was Batman, and this time with Fallout – a series of games that I absolutely loved."
Following T3's report, the community's response was mixed, with some lambasting the director for seemingly disregarding Fallout's existing fanbase and others rushing to Nolan's defense, citing his experience with Fallout 3 as a shield against criticism.
Ultimately, it's still impossible as of right now to predict for certain whether the upcoming show will succeed or not. As a long-time series fan myself, all I can say is, hey, it's Fallout we're talking about. Even if the show disappoints, it wouldn't be the first time we've been let down by Fallout-related products.
Speaking of Fallout products, earlier, Bethesda officially unveiled its 1:1 replica of the upcoming show's version of Pip-Boy, created in collaboration with The Wand Company. Costing $200, the device can play 50 animations, show you the time, and act as an unusual alarm clock when placed on a display stand shipped alongside the gadget.
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