Last year, it was announced that Borderlands, a film adaptation of the same-named video game series, was pushing forward over at Lionsgate, having already spent a handful of years in development. Now it’s been officially revealed that Cate Blanchett will star in this blockbuster project.
It was reported last month that Cate Blanchett was in talks to join Borderlands, and Lionsgate confirmed today that the actress will indeed be coming aboard to play Lilith, a “Siren” with special powers who was a playable character in the original video game and returned as an NPC in the sequel games. Blanchett will reunite with director Eli Roth on the Borderlands movie, with the two of them having previously worked together on The House with a Clock in Its Walls.
Here’s what Eli Roth had to say about getting to work with Cate Blanchett on Borderlands in a statement (via Variety):
I’m so lucky to have the amazing Cate Blanchett starring in Borderlands. We had the most incredible collaboration together on The House with a Clock in Its Walls, and I believe there’s nothing she can’t do. From drama to comedy and now action, Cate makes every scene sing. Working with her is truly a director’s dream come true, and I feel so fortunate that I get to do it again on an even bigger scale. Everyone brings their A-game to work with Cate, and I know together we’re going to create another iconic character in her already storied career.
For those unfamiliar with the Borderlands video games, they are first-person shooters set on the planet Pandora (no, these games are not connected to Avatar), a world filled with dangerous life forms and artifacts left behind by an alien race known as the Eridians. Former employees of corporations that abandoned capitalizing on Pandora took over the planet, but after it’s discovered that these artifacts lead to vaults containing treasures, the corporations and other interested parties come back to find the vaults.
No official Borderlands plot details have been revealed yet, so it’s hard to say if the movie will faithfully adapt one of the video games’ stories or if it will be a brand-new narrative. That said, there’s no shortage of colorful characters who could join Cate Blanchett’s Lilith, with other notable figures from the games including Claptrap (the franchise’s mascot), Handsome Jack and the mysterious “Angel,” to name a few.
Needless to say this won’t be Cate Blanchett’s first foray into the world of genre film, having appeared as Galadriel in the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, Irina Spalko in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Valka in How to Train Your Dragon 2, Lady Tremaine in Cinderella and Hela in Thor: Ragnarok. Blanchett’s other notable credits include Elizabeth, The Aviator, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Ocean’s 8. She’s also starring in the upcoming Guillermo del Toro movie Nightmare Alley and can currently be seen on the Hulu miniseries Mrs. America.
Chernobyl creator and Emmy winner Craig Mazin wrote the most recent draft of the Borderlands movie, with Section 6’s Aaron Berg having previously been handling writing duties. Avi Arad, Ari Arad and Erik Feig are attached as producers, and Randy Pitchford from Gearbox Entertainment Company and Strauss Zelnick from Take Two Interactive will executive produce.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more important updates concerning Borderlands. In the meantime, look through our 2020 release schedule to learn what movies are supposed to hit the big screen later this year.
