Video game movies have a tough time! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the least faithful portrayals of video game characters across film and TV.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the least faithful portrayals
00:18of video game characters across film and TV.
00:29Number 10.
00:30Jake Gyllenhaal as The Prince – Prince of Persia – The Sands of Time
00:34In a bold attempt to kick off a Pirates of the Caribbean-esque franchise, Jake Gyllenhaal
00:39starred in the Prince of Persia film adaption.
00:53The game of the same title follows an unnamed hero who controls time to fight monsters and
00:58maneuver through platforming puzzles.
01:03Gyllenhaal's prince is named Destan, and he's more concerned with overthrowing the
01:07corrupt King of Persia than slashing through monsters.
01:10The Dagger of Time is faithful to the original game, but it's worth mentioning that Gyllenhaal
01:15himself is not of Persian descent.
01:17He probably wishes he could rewind time to reject his role.
01:27Number 9.
01:28Christian Slater as Edward Carnby – Alone in the Dark
01:31What's the only thing scarier than a town of Lovecraftian creatures?
01:36A 1% on Rotten Tomatoes.
01:38Alone in the Dark games follow Edward Carnby, an average private investigator who stumbles
01:43into thrilling supernatural adventures.
01:49This movie pivots the genre from thriller to action, featuring Christian Slater as Carnby.
01:58In the games, Carnby eludes monsters through survival horror mechanics.
02:02Slater's Carnby is more of an action star, and unfortunately, the action here sucks.
02:07What do you expect when Uwe Boll is behind the camera?
02:17This iteration of Carnby faces off against creatures using superhuman physical abilities,
02:22as well as monster senses that alert him to paranormal activity.
02:26If only Slater could sense how badly this movie would bomb.
02:30Number 8.
02:31Cate Blanchett as Lilith – Borderlands Borderlands is famous for its clever dialogue
02:36and iconic cel-shaded art style.
02:39Take that away and what do you have?
02:41The 2024 Borderlands screen-to-screen adaptation starring Cate Blanchett as Lilith, alongside
02:48Jamie Lee Curtis as the similarly dull Dr. Tannis.
02:54Gamers will recognize Lilith as the 22-year-old siren who uses her phase-walk ability to switch
02:59dimensions.
03:00Cate Blanchett's Lilith, on the other hand, is a generic gunslinging bounty hunter spouting
03:04uninspired action movie cliches such as, I'm getting too old for this.
03:09Despite surviving in the wasteland, she appears poised and glamorous, untouched by the maddening
03:14environment surrounding her.
03:16This depiction of Lilith could use a little more character depth.
03:29Number 7.
03:30Mark Wahlberg as Max Payne – Max Payne The Max Payne games were instrumental in popularizing
03:36bullet time, a highly cinematic slow-motion gameplay feature.
03:46It would make sense for this to translate seamlessly into a film format.
03:49However, Mark Wahlberg's portrayal of Max Payne was so lackluster, he earned himself
03:54a Razzie for Worst Actor, turning this action hero into an Action Zero.
04:06With tropes galore, Wahlberg's performance inflicts maximum pain on the viewer and leaves
04:12us wondering how such a powerful protagonist could come off as so boring.
04:17We don't need bullet time to see this bomb coming.
04:26Number 6.
04:27Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief – Halo The Halo TV series split audiences with Master
04:32Chief himself being the key point of contention.
04:35One of the most controversial moments among die-hard Halo fans came in the show's pilot
04:40after Master Chief removes his helmet, something he has never done across any of the games.
04:48Additionally, the show features a scene with the Spartan having relations with an imprisoned
04:55member of the Covenant, the alien faction at war with humanity.
05:08Fans were conflicted, holding the sentiment that Master Chief would never remove his armor,
05:12let alone with a perceived enemy of humanity.
05:15Because of this controversy, Pablo Schreiber's Master Chief can say Halo to number 6.
05:22Number 5.
05:23Rupert Friend as Agent 47 – Hitman Agent 47
05:35Agent 47 was genetically engineered and ruthlessly trained into the most efficient contract assassin
05:40in the world.
05:41The games, while having numerous creative paths for executing targets, often steer players
05:45towards stealth eliminations for high-profile hits.
05:54Our titular killer in Hitman Agent 47 opts for brute force tactics and shootouts in broad
05:59daylight over these covert methods integral to his games.
06:09This was the second feature portrayal of Agent 47, his first being Timothy Olyphant in the
06:142007 film.
06:2247's look is easy to nail with a suit, a bald cap, and a barcode on the back of his
06:30head.
06:31Despite all of that, Rupert Friend's portrayal simply doesn't scan.
06:35Number 4.
06:36Tom Holland as Nathan Drake – Uncharted Nolan North is regarded as one of the greatest
06:40video game voice actors of all time.
06:43Tom Holland had his work cut out for him upon taking on his role as Uncharted's fearless
06:48treasure hunter Nathan Drake.
06:53This makes for a jarring contrast of personality coming from Nolan North's performance coupled
06:58with Mark Wahlberg and Victor Sullivan.
07:01The Uncharted series plunges Nathan Drake into a rich environment with thrilling parkour
07:05and puzzle segments.
07:07This movie serves as a stunted origin story to Nathan Drake's international escapades,
07:12failing to capture his adventurous spirit that games do so well.
07:21Treasure hunters beware, there's not much to salvage here.
07:30Number 3.
07:31Alicia Vigander as Lara Croft One of the most well-known female video game
07:35protagonists and co-mascot of the PlayStation game console absolutely deserves a spot on
07:40the big screen.
07:42Lara Croft, the highly decorated archaeologist and expert combatant, has been in three different
07:47film adaptations.
07:57Despite being a prominent female figure in the world of video games, 2018's Tomb Raider
08:02fails to highlight what makes Lara Croft such an engaging character.
08:08Say what you will about the Angelina Jolie movies, but at least she had fun in the role.
08:25While learning from its predecessors and keeping Lara relatively grounded in reality, audiences
08:30were split over Alicia Vigander's less-than-compelling portrayal.
08:34It seems like the hardest puzzle to solve when adapting a video game is making everybody
08:39happy.
08:40Number 2.
08:41Bob Hoskins and John Ledsguizamo as Mario Mario and Luigi Mario – Super Mario Bros.
08:49The first live-action video game movie adaptation was 1993's Super Mario Bros., which was
08:54foundational for this notorious genre.
08:57The Mario Bros. have done it all, from racing go-karts to hunting ghosts.
09:02Unfortunately, when making this campy romp of an adaptation, the writers threw all source
09:07material out the window.
09:13Fan-favorite Mario creatures such as Yoshi, Toad, and King Koopa are unrecognizable from
09:18their cutesy video game counterparts turned into overly prehistoric versions of themselves.
09:29Mario and Luigi are devoid of all personality, with characterization weaker than a World
09:34One Koopa Troopa.
09:35While being considered a cult classic, this movie was a massive box office ba-bomb.
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10:08Chun-Li is one of the most iconic protagonists in the genre of fighting games.
10:12Instantly recognizable from her martial arts skills and famous chi-pao dress, Street Fighter
10:17The Legend of Chun-Li fumbled its interpretation of this Interpol icon.
10:31Fans of the series expect brawls and broad daylight with killer combos, but scenes of
10:36Chun-Li's fights are scarce and seldom out on the street.
10:46Straying from what made Chun-Li so great in the games results in a hero as derivative
10:51as the nameless goons she beats up.
10:541994's Street Fighter garnered a cult following, but after The Legend of Chun-Li, Capcom brought
11:00the band hammered down on any live-action feature adaptations of their properties.
11:09Talk about a combo breaker.
11:11Let us know which of these portrayals made you rage quit in the comments, and don't
11:15forget to like and subscribe for more WatchMojo videos.