Fortnite creator knows exactly how he would make the Fortnite movie, but says he can’t see it happening “anytime soon”
Over the past years there has been plenty of talk about a potential Fortnite movie, which is hardly surprising when you look at the immense popularity of that video game combined with the success of recent adaptations including Amazon Prime Video’s Fallout and HBO’s The Last of Us.
Despite plenty of interest from fans as well as several filmmakers, such as Fast X director Louis Leterrier, the co-creator of the beloved battle royale game doubts that a Fortnite movie will happen anytime soon. However, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t already have a vision for what it could look like.
Speaking to GamesRadar+ recently at the Sands: International Film Festival in St Andrews, Scotland, the former CCO of Epic Games, Donald Mustard, revealed that if a Fortnite film were to ever happen, he’d like to oversee it as he thinks he would “make the best version” of that. As he told us: “If there ever was a Fortnite movie, I know exactly how I would make it. I think I would make the best version of that. But we’re not.
“Even back then [when Mustard was at Epic Games], there were never actual plans to make a Fortnite movie and I don’t anticipate that changing anytime soon. I think Fortnite as an experience is very unique to the medium it’s in right now and I know that. So, I don’t think there will be a Fortnite movie at least not anytime soon, but I think people would love it.”
When we mention that the likes of Rebel Moon’s Zack Snyder as well as Leterrier have expressed interest in working on a Fortnite movie, Mustard chuckles, emphasizing once again that he would be keen to oversee it: “I haven’t talked to Zack Snyder specifically about it… but I would want to do it.”
Mustard is now in a great position to do just that if he does wish to pursue a Fortnite film eventually, given that he recently joined production company AGBO which is founded by Avengers: Endgame directors the Russo Brothers. As a partner there, he is already getting stuck in developing several ideas, not that he can provide any further details on what these are exactly yet though.
However, he can tease that exciting times lie ahead: “Joe and Anthony [Russo] have always had a unique storytelling voice and you can see that in everything from Arrested Development to Community, to [Captain America] Winter Soldier to [Avengers] Infinity War – I mean look at Extraction, Cherry etc. Their body of work is so impressive in their scope and their range, and their ability to create characters that make us laugh and cry, and do all that in such an emotional and unique way. I’m really drawn to that as a storyteller and as an entertainer.
“They have also always been technologists and they really love using the latest technology to better tell stories. We are very aligned in how we approach building stuff and we are developing things. We are in the earliest stages of developing some new stories and some new worlds that we are excited to create. It’s fun, it’s amazing for me, a dream come true to work with artists that I respect and admire so much. So, we’ll see.”
For more from our interview with Mustard, here’s what he had to say when reflecting on the game’s $26 billion success and how several filmmakers played a crucial role in the shaping of the battle royale.
Meanwhile for more games like Fortnite, be sure to check out our recommendations for the best battle royale games.