How the Assassin’s Creed Show Could Outdo the 2016 Film

Netflix has finally greenlit the Assassin’s Creed series, with new showrunners Roberto Patino and David Wiener officially attached to the project. The long-awaited live-action adaptation has been in development hell for years, though Ubisoft was reportedly still trying to put something together as late as 2020.

Netflix finally gave the game series its stamp of approval in a recent announcement. The streaming service has hired Roberto Patino and David Wiener as showrunners, and the two have already penned a joint statement about their intentions for the Assassin’s Creed series, which, at this point, is a mystery to most fans and viewers alike.

Patino and Wiener both bring solid television writing experience to the series, having written for such series as HBO’s Westworld and FX’s Sons of Anarchy, respectively. Wiener was also the showrunner on the Paramount+ Halo series and AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead.

“I’ve read everything Assassin’s Creed, played every game, and every installment offers me a new way to look at the world. Assassin’s Creed is filled with ideas about humanity that are particularly resonant with me: family, belonging, choice, and freedom. We both approach this from a human level, questioning: What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to love? We have a lot of thoughts, and now we get to tell you all about them,” said the two in a joint press release.

“Working on this show every day, we’re reminded that Assassin’s Creed is much more than the sum of its parts. Beneath the scope, the spectacle, the parkour, and the thrills is a baseline for the most essential kind of human story—about people searching for purpose, struggling with questions of identity and destiny, and faith. It is about power and violence and sex and greed and vengeance. But more than anything, this is a show about the value of human connection, transcending cultures and time. And it’s about what we stand to lose as a species when those connections break.”

Patino and Wiener also mentioned the incredibly complex world-building that they will have to work with when they develop the show. They added that they are working closely with Ubisoft and Netflix to craft something that fans all over the world will want to watch. The production team, according to the showrunners, is an amazing group, and they are optimistic about the future of the project.

Who should we expect in the cast?

Not much information was provided about the show, and until an actual season or episode is released, much will be speculation. The series is expected to follow the same premise as the game, with a story centered around a centuries-old battle between assassins and templars, both fighting for a better world.

The story would usually take the form of a modern-day conflict, taking the form of a genetic memory experience, but with the later games, the side conflict took on its adventure with protagonist Desmond Miles and his connection to the titular Assassin’s Creed.

Casting for the show has not been announced, and it is unclear whether or not we will be following the life of one of the Assassins or Templars from the games, or if it will branch off into something new. The Assassin’s Creed games have enjoyed a near-constant installments in their history, so Netflix should have some leeway in crafting a new take on this new world.

It is still unknown whether the Netflix series will be connected to the 2016 Assassin’s Creed film, also starring Michael Fassbender in the lead role. The film was considered a hit at the box office but suffered from a disappointing critical response. It would not be unusual to have both installments take on their own story, separate from the games.

A Fresh Take in a Season of Game-to-Screen Adaptations

Game-to-screen adaptations are still a bit of a risk for studios, but have become more normalized in recent years with the success of shows like HBO’s The Last of Us and Netflix’s own The Witcher, which faced its controversies. Assassin’s Creed is yet another massively popular game franchise to get the big-screen adaptation treatment, and with Ubisoft’s willingness to take its time and focus on quality, it seems as if Netflix is putting its resources behind this adaptation.

Whether Netflix’s live-action series can also reach the heights of the Assassin’s Creed games is yet to be seen, but with a showrunner duo at the helm and a massive historical sandbox to play in, a great story is more than possible in Netflix’s newest venture.