A new featurette for Assassin’s Creed, the upcoming film that expands on the world of the popular Ubisoft video game series, was released online Wednesday morning. The video features cast and crew from the film explaining what appealed to them about the multimedia world that come December will exist in video games, novels, comics, shorts, and big screen live-action adventure.
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“The Assassin’s Creed universe just seemed like something that would lend itself very nicely to a cinematic experience,” star Michael Fassbender said. The actor stars as both Callum Lynch in the modern day and his ancestor, Aguilar, an assassin in 15th Century Spain. The central conceit of the Assassin’s Creed world is that modern-day Assassins and Templars continue their shadow war, while using technology to explore the past, reliving the lives of their ancestors, and find artifacts of immense power.
Director Justin Kurzel wants this world to be one you can imagine being hidden behind the closed doors of major tech companies and political powers.
“We’re really determined to make an audience believe that this world and these characters exist,” Kurzel said. “I want it to be an unbelievable ride mixed with these exotic worlds that then lead you into some action sequences that are really dynamic.”
The featurette, as others before it, also focused on the immense amount of practical effects and stunts used in Assassin’s Creed, something flung in the face of “this era of CGI.” The on-location shoots and parkour stunts are shown off significantly in the featurette, even showing a stuntman doing a flip and landing directly on a high-wire; a shot directly out of the games.
“When you put on the costume, you really feel like the character,” Fassbender said. The “weapon of choice” for him is the hidden blades, the signature weapon of the Assassin.
The featurette also offers up a close look at the Apple of Eden in the film (see the gallery below). The ultimate mystical artifact in the Assassin’s Creed world, most of the world’s present day storylines have included the Templars looking for the Apple of Eden, and the Assassins trying to protect it.
Assassin’s Creed doesn’t adapt the video games it’s based upon, instead introducing new characters into that world and expanding the story. The film from 20th Century Fox hits theaters December 21, 2016.
“Through a revolutionary technology that unlocks his genetic memories, Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender) experiences the adventures of his ancestor, Aguilar, in 15th Century Spain. Callum discovers he is descended from a mysterious secret society, the Assassins, and amasses incredible knowledge and skills to take on the oppressive and powerful Templar organization in the present day.
“ASSASSIN’S CREED stars Academy Awardยฎ nominee Michael Fassbender (X-Men: Days of Future Past, 12 Years a Slave) and Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard (The Dark Knight Rises, La Vie en Rose). The film is directed by Justin Kurzel (Snowtown, Macbeth); produced by New Regency, Ubisoft Motion Pictures, DMC Films and Kennedy/Marshall; co-financed by RatPac Entertainment and Alpha Pictures; and distributed by 20th Century Fox.”
