Following the success of its Fallout TV series adaptation, Amazon MGM Studios has now greenlit a series based on the long-running Wolfenstein video game series.
Specific story details are under wraps, but it sounds like the TV series will maintain the video game franchise's premise of fighting Nazis in an alternate history. Variety shared the logline, which reads: "The story of killing Nazis is evergreen."
The games are typically set in an alternate history where the Nazis won World War II, leading to a dystopian world dominated by a technologically advanced Third Reich. The majority of the titles follow American soldier William "B.J." Blazkowicz in his battle against the Nazis, although the alternate history premise does change between games.
The long-running franchise has moved between multiple developers and publishers. The latest releases -- Wolfenstein: The New Order and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus -- have both been developed by MachineGames and published by Bethesda Softworks, the same publisher that now handles the Fallout video game franchise, which has also been successfully adapted by Amazon into a TV series.
It's unclear if Amazon's TV series will adapt these latest games, which take us to an alternate history 1960s where the Nazis won the Second World War thanks to advanced technology such as mech suits and cybernetic soldiers. The New Order was set in Europe, while The New Colossus shifted to a Nazi-occupied America.
Amazon appears to be assembling an all-star team to develop the new series, which includes reuniting with Fallout production company Kilter Films. Other key members include The Leftovers writer and Station Eleven creator Patrick Somerville as well as the Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy, and Athena Wickham.
Somerville will serve as the creator, writer, executive producer, and showrunner via his chaoticgood.tv banner. Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy, and Athena Wickham will serve as executive producers, and are joined by James Altman of Keyframe Films and Jerk Gustafsson from Wolfenstein developer MachineGames, who will also executive produce.
Variety notes that Somerville has been a fan of the Wolfenstein games since he was a child, which hopefully means the series will be in good hands.
Amazon and Kilter Films have experienced great success so far with the adaptation of Fallout. The live-action series, which is based on Bethesda's beloved post-apocalyptic RPG, received rave reviews for its first season and is currently preparing for the release of its second season in December. The series has already been renewed for a third season.
In addition to Fallout and now Wolfenstein, Amazon has a number of other video game adaptations in the works, including a series based on PlayStation's God of War. There are also projects based on the Mass Effect and Warhammer 40,000 video game franchises.