The long-gestating Uncharted movie finally has its Nathan Drake. Tom Holland, the young actor who has recently taken on the mantle of Spider-Man will step into the shoes of the loudmouthed adventurer.
He’ll be portraying a younger version of Drake, one that is inspired by the flashback sequence in Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. This certainly wasn’t the choice many expected, but it does remove some of the pressures on the film. Many wondered who would be cast as the lead in the film because Nathan Drake is such a beloved character. The quips and bit of snappy dialogue he delivers are so charming and entertaining that an Uncharted movie would live or die based on who was cast in the lead role.
Choosing to skew younger means a slightly different take on the character can be realized. During the sequence in Uncharted 3, young Drake is still getting the hang of the thieving lifestyle. It’s meeting victor Sullivan that helps him reach his full potential and become the man he is.
The Uncharted movie is set to tell that story, and Tom Holland is just the man to help tell it. Not only does the 20-year-old British actor resemble the young adventurer, he is easy enough on the eyes to serve as a dashing lead in an action film and charismatic enough to pull off a younger version of the character made famous thanks to the dulcet tones of Nolan North.
We’ve seen Holland as Spider-Man for roughly 30 minutes in Captain America: Civil War. In that film, he perfectly captures both the nerdy, awkward persona of Peter Parker and the boisterous, acrobatic jokiness of the web slinger. We know he has the chops to come off as a likable lead and the looks to appear younger than his age.
So we are getting a talented, well-trained actor playing a rambunctious kid of roughly 15. Holland is also physically able for whatever stunts he’ll need to pull off, which will likely include plenty of leaping over gaps and falling off walls as small bits snap off while he shimmies along a ledge.
We’ve also seen Holland play off Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark, a character that, in the MCU, is like a mentor to the fledgling superhero. So as long as the film’s casting directors can find a great choice for the mustachioed victor Sullivan, Holland will likely be able to capture all the important facets of the character.
Because the film will center around a younger version of the character, the studio now has more freedom. They no longer need to directly adapt the character seen in the games. Instead, they can illustrate young Nathan Drake’s transformation into the hero we all want to see immortalized on the silver screen. Holland will undoubtedly give an enthusiastic performance that both channels the Nathan Drake we know and introduces us to aspects of the character that we never knew we wanted.
Regardless of how the Uncharted movie turns out, Tom Holland is a great choice as a lead. His charisma, athleticism, and talent make him a good leading man, even at the tender age of 20. He’ll do the character justice and who knows, maybe one day he’ll take on the role of the adult Drake as well, allowing us to watch the character grow up before us.
The Uncharted movie is set to release sometime 2018.
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