Of the many video game adaptations that are in the works, one of the most intriguing is the Horizon Zero Dawn TV series. Netflix is responsible for bringing Guerrilla Games’ hit title to the screen and it’s been confirmed that Aloy, the heroine of the franchise voiced by Ashly Burch, will be the main character.
Recently, Kotaku Australia had the chance to speak to Ashly Burch about her role in Apple TV+’s Mythic Quest. At the time we asked for the actress’ opinion on Hollywood’s current video game obsession, having featured in many of the games that are being adapted right now.
“It’s so interesting,” Burch said. “Because… that was a pretty rare thing. It was like, when the Tomb Raider movie got announced, I remember being like ‘can they do this?’ They can make movies from [games]? And it’s so commonplace now.”
Speaking about the Horizon Zero Dawn TV series, Burch said it felt like a “not if but when” situation and that she was very interested to see how it progresses.
“I’m honestly really interested to see how it adapts because I think the folks behind it are really smart and they know that they’re making a TV show and TV shows are different from games,” Burch said. “So I think it’s going to be really interesting to see what is different about this adaptation.”
“I’m also just a fan of the franchise. I mean, I played both games and I love them. So I’m really very curious and excited to see what they do with it,” she added.
The Horizon Zero Dawn series is being overseen by writers Steve Blackman and Michelle Lovretta who have both spent time on Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy. At the time of the announcement, Blackman said he was “thrilled to be able to expand this remarkable IP into a series for all types of viewers.”
Horizon Zero Dawn is one of a few game franchises making the jump to live-action along with the likes of Halo, The Last of Us, Fallout, Borderlands and BioShock, just to name a few.
Adaptations of video games haven’t typically had the best reception but Burch was confident the quality is improving:
“I think that game adaptations are only getting better too. I feel like the folks that are behind them are really thinking about what is it about this that is the core of it that needs to be preserved? And then how can we change it to fit the medium that it’s being brought into?” she continued. “Because really, if you’re going to just whole cloth take the story from the game and just go [splat] on to a TV show, then you could just play the game.”
As for whether Burch herself will appear in the Horizon Zero Dawn live-action series in some way, shape or form, we’ll have to wait and see.
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