‘Fallout’ Producer Jonathan Nolan Asks ‘Where Are All the Original Stories?’ — Countering The Rise of TV Adaptations
Jonathan Nolan and Ella Purnell on the 'Fallout' set, courtesy of JOJO WHILDEN/PRIME VIDEO.
2024 has been a smash hit for TV shows such as ‘Shōgun,’ ‘Fallout,’ ‘Reacher,’ ‘Ripley,’ and ‘Masters of the Air’ — just to name a few. Shows via streaming seem to be more in-demand than ever and audiences are continuing to watch. Jonathan Nolan has conflicting thoughts amid the success of his latest TV adaption ‘Fallout.’
“Someone shocked me the other day by saying that ‘Interstellar’ remains one of the highest-grossing original films of the last 10 years, and, to me, that is heartbreaking,” Nolan says about the 2014 space epic that he co-wrote with his brother Christopher. “Where are the original stories? Adaptations are great, and I’m so happy with the way ‘Fallout’ has worked, but I think it will be a real shame if television went the same way that filmmaking has gone.”
Jonathan Nolan is no stranger to adaptation — he co-wrote The Dark Knight Trilogy and co-created HBO’s ‘Westworld.’ He says the “50%” of his professional work has been in the realm of adaptions.
“I have been careful to avoid working on any kind of adaptation in which the expectation is that it has to be rigorous, because you have no room to play,” Nolan says. “So I never was interested in working on a ‘Harry Potter’ or ‘Lord of the Rings.’ I like these hybrid products; you’re adapting but you’re still finding a way to exercise your own storytelling muscle. With true adaptation, you’re always changing. I mean, even the word adaptation implies a sense of transition or changing. If you respect something, you have the guts to tell the original creators and fans, ‘We’re going to find a path to a respectful and heartfelt adaptation, but we have to change some things over here to make it work.’”
Amazon‘s ‘Fallout’ smashed all previous records, totalling 2.9 billion minutes viewed in its first five days, becoming the streaming platform’s most successful title to date.
A season 2 has now been confirmed and eyeing an early 2026 release.
Watch a scene from ‘Fallout’ (2024) below:
