InBorderlands , Jamie Lee Curtis plays Tannis , a particular scientist who agree to help oneself Lilith ( Cate Blanchett ) and her work party unveil one of Pandora ’s recondite enigma . The ragtag and bobtail group of improbable allies includes Roland ( Kevin Hart ) , a veteran soldier of fortune ; Tiny Tina ( Ariana Greenblatt ) , a catlike adolescent with a dash for explosive ; Krieg ( Florian Munteanu ) , a masked giant with beefy muscles ; and Claptrap ( Jack Black ) , a witty golem that never keeps muted . point byEli Roth , Borderlandsis an action film of larger-than-life proportion , with fast - pace chase sequences and slapstick comedy .
In an interview with Digital Trends , Curtis and Randy Pitchford , CEO of Gearbox , which develop the Borderlands TV games , spoke about how they brought the game ’s characters to lifetime on the gravid screen , the lack of a non - negotiables leaning for the movie , and howBorderlandsis not attempt to be the nextCitizen Kane .
Note : This clause has been edit for distance and clarity .
Digital Trends : With character reference , it ’s always about the signature item that make them unique and stand out . For Tannis , it ’s her reddish - tinted glasses . I get laid her affinity for object — ECHOnetand her chairwoman . As an role player , how does using the objects take you inside the character and give you a better understanding ?
Jamie Lee Curtis : Well , what most people do n’t know is I signed up to do the movie because Cate Blanchett was going to be in it , and I was go to be in some scenes with her . Full stop . To be perfectly reliable , if it had just been a movie about the dictionary , I would be like , “ Cate Blanchett is survive to be saying words , and I say watchword back to her . ” They would say , “ Yes . ” I would say , “ OK , I ’m doing it . ”
I really did n’t know much about it [ the biz ] . I knew what was on the page of the script , which is an adaption of a biz . It takes the lore of the character , but it does n’t do it really dandy justice because you ’re serving the narrative story of the pic .
I had this great opportunity during COVID . Before a flight from Germany to Hungary , I was walk toward the plane and a char in front of me turned and said , “ Hi , Jamie . I ’m Kristy Pitchford . I wrote Tannis . ” At that moment , I allege , “ We will be sitting together on the plane . ”
From Germany to Hungary , I understood who Tannis was . I did not cognize about objectum gender . I did not sleep with about object attraction . I did not know the expanse of the spectrum that she lived in and flourish in . I was very golden to have the woman who wrote the character give me a peck of data . It was like traveling with an encyclopedia . Then I did enquiry once I get to Hungary when I was in captivity for whatever amount of time . We were locked in our room . We ’re not countenance to talk to anyone else . I did a lot of that .
None of that is really in the flick . It was too vague . It was too backbreaking to explain to people that I had a kinship with ECHOnet , and that we were together for a long full point of clip , and then broke up and had to work together , which is always awkward . None of that made the film . Clark , her chairperson in her office . We shot it . People tried to sit on Clark . I find very angry at them . They had to stay away from Clark . None of that made the movie , but it does n’t matter . What weigh is the intention of the character is straight , and I ’m well-chosen with how it all has come together because a tidy sum is going on .
Randy Pitchford : you may feel Tannis in Jamie ’s execution . It ’s absolutely improbable . Her commitment to the character , I ’ll incessantly be grateful .
William Curtis : Yeah , it ’s a very interesting little part of a much bountiful soup .
To steal an idea fromThe Bear , Carmy writes a list of non - negotiablesat the beginning of season 3 . The thing that the chef must do to make their restaurant amazing . Randy , I ’ll use that same concept with you .
William Curtis : That ’s so right . Go , Randy .
As the creator of the game and an executive manufacturer on the plastic film , did you have a leaning of non - negotiables for Eli ? It does n’t have to be a strong-arm list . Did you know what expression of the game had to go into the movie ?
Pitchford : I actually take the paired approaching , Dan . I am a television game developer ; that ’s the kind of entertainer I am . I ’m not a film maker . I aver , reckon , the filmmakers are the chefs in the kitchen . I am the prep Captain James Cook . I ’m the sous chef . I ’m just going to do up anything they take to assist them make the best knockout they can make . I want to be a resource and an ally and support that process .
Curtis : You were , and go on to be throughout the process , which can be dispute .
Pitchford : Thank you , Jamie . It ’s very hard . It ’s stuff that was born with my team and me — the things I ’ve created and get it on and care for . I have to nurture them , but I also have to localise them free . What ’s cool is the characters and the population and the themes and the plot line have gotten so robust that they do have a lifespan of their own now . It ’s exciting when incredible storyteller , filmmaker , and talent can take this stuff and rick it into something that bring out their ripe qualities . I love that so much .
William Curtis : We had a funny affair happen atComic - Con . We were in these group interviews , and Kevin , who dove into wreak Roland , made a joke very quickly saying he went online and read the Reddit threads . “ No ‘ jazz agency Kevin Hart is Roland because he ’s not marvellous ! ”
Curtis : What ’s interesting is that when you see the motion-picture show , Kevin Hart is large . It does n’t count what his acme is . That ’s the ravisher of the motion-picture show . It ’s not about strong-arm sizing because Roland is f**king badass . Whether or not the game was written where Roland is this hulking human does n’t count .
Maybe some of the television game fans will be like he need to be self-aggrandizing . But you know what ? That ’s a lowly literary criticism because these are human beings . Kevin Hartwanted to become an action principal , dedicated himself to becoming a soldier of fortune , and did a corking job .
Pitchford : Yeah , you absolutely buy him . He did a really groovy problem . It ’s an awing performance . I createdBorderlandsto mess around in that weird space between thing that do n’t fit ; that ’s literally what the title means .
Borderlandsis calledBorderlandsbecause what ’s between a torpedo and a role - play secret plan ? What ’s between a Western and a science fabrication ? What ’s between a drama and a drollery ? What ’s between who characters retrieve they are and who they actually are ?
Curtis : OK , you should publish a book because that ’s as kind of an accurate description of the bulls**t life that we all direct .
Pitchford : Yes !
Curtis : We’re allBorderlands .
Pitchford : Yes ! That ’s correct , and I recollect that ’s whyBorderlandsworked as a video game . With this film , I wanted to explore that eldritch , uncomfortable place between a video biz and a movie . The expectation when we started was that it was going to suckle because all motion-picture show base on video games suck , right ? I want to plunge into that and see if we can really do something where the decisions are n’t being made by suits , but made by artists who need to actually play with and research this medium .
That ’s what we did . We made a fun pic . It ’s not sample to beCitizen Kane . Borderlandsis trying to be as fun as the game is . Borderlandsis trying to be fun as a movie . The people who know the game are going to have an experience that ’s altogether different from all the raw people who are cash in one’s chips to discoverBorderlandsfor the first time .
You get to live in that weird , uncomfortable spot between the synergistic experience and the film experience because it is in that border district . I opine people who really getBorderlandswill get that , too . I think they ’re going to have sex playing in that space with us .
Well , I ca n’t wait to read that leger now .
Curtis : Me , too .
Pitchford:[laughs ] Jamie just send me .
Curtis : We’re all Borderlandsis the title of the Quran . You ’re gon na rise poetic like an artist and explain to the universe how we are all pick up between what we pretend to be and what we think we are . It ’s genius .
Borderlandsis now in theater .
