The highly-anticipated "Assassin's Creed" movie isn't just for die-hard fans of the popular video game franchise. The film's lead star Michael Fassbender believes there's something in it for casual moviegoers as well.
DNA Memories
In a recent interview with Game Stop, the German-Irish thespian said "Assassin's Creed" tows a unique concept that many audiences will enjoy. People don't need to be fans of the games to be invested in the movie's plot.
"There's a lot of action-adventure films out there at the moment, but what was really unique about this one, what elevated it above other action-adventure fantasy films was the idea of DNA memories," Fassbender explained. "I thought that was really something that would take the audience on a more immersive journey."
A New Story
According to Polygon, the film is based on Ubisoft's open-world action-adventure franchise. However, it won't be a direct adaptation of any specific "Assassin's Creed" title. The story takes place in the games' universe, but is set in a completely different time period.
Fassbender stars as Callum Lynch, a present-day descendant of the 15th century Spanish Assassin Aguilar de Nerha. Through experiencing his ancestor's adventures, Lynch slowly develops remarkable skills and abilities to take on the modern incarnation of the dreaded Templar organization, as per IGN.
"We picked a regression that's completely new. We're not really dealing with any parallels with the game, we're introducing new characters with Callum and Aguilar," said the 39-year old actor. "We're trying to stay true to the core things: the Animus, the DNA memories of the characters, the artefacts. That's enough information to be giving new audiences that haven't played the game."
Moral Ambiguity
Fassbender admitted that he wasn't really a fan of the "Assassin's Creed" games, or video games in general. What interested him the most about Ubisoft's film project was its originality and its characters' moral ambiguity.
"This isn't Star Wars, there isn't a dark side and light side. It's a very grey world where both sides are contradictory of their belief systems," he cleared. "I always think it's more interesting when you've got a grey area as opposed to black and white."
"Assassin's Creed" also stars Marion Cotillard, Brendan Gleeson, Jeremy Irons and Ariane Labed. It is scheduled for release on December 16, 2016.
