The Uncharted movie is finally, actually happening – and we have photographic evidence. Filming on the Sony Pictures adaptation of the beloved video game franchise got underway in March of this year with Tom Holland in the lead role of Nathan Drake, but was then swiftly shut down due to COVID-19. Production then picked back up in July, and now our first look at Holland in character has arrived thanks to some set photos from Nolan North, who voiced the character of Nathan Drake in the video game franchise.
Indeed, given Holland’s predilection for accidentally spilling secrets you may have assumed this was all the Spider-Man actor’s fault, but clearly Sony orchestrated this first reveal as a hand-off of sorts between North and Holland, no doubt aiming to appease fans who are still skeptical of the movie.
It’s been a long road to getting Uncharted to the big screen. Development first began all the way back in 2008, at which time the fan campaign to cast Nathan Fillion as Nathan Drake was strong. Then in 2010, David O. Russell (of The Fighter and American Hustle fame) signed on to direct and Mark Wahlberg was eyed to play Drake, with names like Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci bandied about as part of Russell’s wishlist for the ensemble. That iteration never really got off the ground and in 2011, Neil Burger (Limitless) took over as director only to then drop out in 2012 to make Divergent. Subsequently, Seth Gordon (Identity Thief) briefly sat in the director’s chair, and then in 2016 Joe Carnahan (The Grey) signed on to write the script with Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum) directing.
It was the Carnahan/Levy version of Uncharted where Holland first became involved, as Sony Pictures decided it could be interesting to make a film that served as a prequel to the games (hence the younger casting). Levy departed in 2018, after which Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Lane) signed on to direct, only to leave over creative differences eight months later. Then Travis Knight (Bumblebee) signed on to take the helm, casting Wahlberg as Victor Sullivan, only for Knight to also leave the director’s chair over scheduling conflicts – Sony needed Uncharted filming to be complete ASAP so the actor could shoot the next Spider-Man movie, and Knight was uncomfortable with that rushed timeline.
Got all that? So now here we are over a decade and dozens of directors later, and the Uncharted movie is a reality. Ruben Fleischer, who directed the Zombieland movies as well as Sony’s hit Venom, is directing the movie now and the cast also includes Antonio Banderas.
All of this to say, this set photo of Holland in costume, on the set of the Uncharted movie that is actually really filming, was a long time coming. Check out the images below courtesy of Nolan North. The Uncharted movie is set to hit theaters on July 16, 2021.