Eli Roth’s Borderlands movie gets a synopsis

Édgar Ramírez is the latest person to join Eli Roth’s in-development film adaptation of 2K Games’ Borderlands franchise. Ramírez will be playing Atlas, described by Deadline as “a business titan and arms manufacturer, and the most powerful person in the universe.”

Ramirez will be playing the video game character Atlas, described by Deadline as “a business titan and arms manufacturer, and the most powerful person in the universe.”

Cate Blanchett leads the cast as Lilith, a siren and legendary thief equipped with magical skills. Kevin Hart signed on to star as ex-soldier-turned-mercenary Roland. Jamie Lee Curtis will play Dr. Patricia Tannis. Ariana Greenblatt is Tiny Tina and Jack Black is voicing Claptrap.

Lionsgate has released the synopsis for the film.

Lilith (Blanchett), an infamous outlaw with a mysterious past, reluctantly returns to her home planet of Pandora to find the missing daughter of the universe’s most powerful S.O.B., Atlas (Ramirez). Lilith forms an alliance with an unexpected team – Roland (Hart), a former elite mercenary, now desperate for redemption; Tiny Tina (Greenblatt), a feral pre-teen demolitionist; Krieg (Munteanu), Tina’s musclebound, rhetorically challenged protector; Tannis (Curtis), the scientist with a tenuous grip on sanity; and Claptrap (Black), a persistently wiseass robot. These unlikely heroes must battle alien monsters and dangerous bandits to find and protect the missing girl, who may hold the key to unimaginable power. The fate of the universe could be in their hands – but they’ll be fighting for something more: each other.

“What an incredible honor to have an actor of Edgar’s caliber, talent, and charisma playing opposite Cate Blanchett and this remarkable cast,” Roth said. “Atlas has to be a truly magnetic personality, someone with charisma and charm but that air of menace underneath it all. I’ve been a fan of Edgar’s since his early performances and he continues to amaze me with each dramatic turn. We want to create something wild, fun, and very different from anything they’ve seen from Edgar before. I am so, so excited to work with him.”

Based on the bestselling PC and console gaming experience from developer Gearbox Software and publisher 2K, a wholly owned label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., Borderlands will be produced by Avi Arad and Ari Arad, who produce through their Arad Productions banner, and Erik Feig, through PICTURESTART, who have shepherded the project and overseen development, including the latest draft of the screenplay by the two-time Emmy-winning screenwriter Craig Mazin. The film’s executive producers are Randy Pitchford, executive producer of the Borderlands video game franchise and founder of the Gearbox Entertainment Company, and Strauss Zelnick, chairman and CEO of Take-Two Interactive.

Borderlands is one of the world’s most successful video game franchises, with more than 57 million units sold-in worldwide, including over 22 million units of Borderlands 2, which is the highest-selling title in the history of 2K. The most recent installment, Borderlands 3, which launched in September 2019, already sold-in nearly 8 million units worldwide and was honored with the award for “Best Multiplayer Game” at Gamescom.