Borderlands’ messy in-between: How a crazy pitch became a video game megahit and movie

Sharing is caring!

It’s been a dozen years in the making and gone through nearly as many writers. Production survived a global pandemic and spanned the rise of the good video game movie. It’s a flick packed with a star-studded and Oscar-winning cast, soaking in bombastic flair and enlivened by 3D-printed assets plucked straight from game art.

After all these years, the Borderlands movie is upon us, and with the help of director Eli Roth—and not a few quips from Jack Black as Claptrap—it seems to be a colorful adaptation that will both satisfy and entertain.

But that journey to this moment is two tales of the Borderlands that are also worth telling. How a relative gamble on a new type of video game led to a massive 85 million unit megahit. Why the movie spent so long in development. How a director famed for his crafty horror came to direct a sci-fi comedy. And what all of this—the games, the struggle, the movie—did to help define Gearbox Software as a new sort of video game and entertainment creator.

To read the rest of this story, which originally ran on Aug. 8, 2024, check out Epic Games Store.