If you thought the Elden Ring movie was just going to be two hours of Margit beating up a confused protagonist, think again. New set footage has emerged that seemingly confirms the presence of early-game enemies and what looks to be a recognizable castle location, according to Eurogamer.
Production on Alex Garland's film - which is at least partially serving as a prequel to FromSoftware's legendary RPG - appears to be in full swing. The latest set video points toward the use of Conwy Castle in Wales as a filming location, which FromSouls veterans will immediately start mentally mapping to every castle they repeatedly died in during the first few hours of the game.
Even the trash mobs are getting screen time
This is the part that really has the community buzzing. If low-level foes are showing up on set, that suggests Garland's adaptation is committed to faithfully recreating the early Lands Between experience - which, let's be honest, mostly consists of getting absolutely demolished by enemies that any veteran player would consider warmup fodder.
For context, this movie was already looking like a surprisingly faithful adaptation. Eurogamer previously reported that the Dung Eater - yes, THAT guy - appears to be included in the project. If they're going all-in on one of the game's most wonderfully deranged NPCs, throwing in some basic Stormveil mooks tracks perfectly.
Prequel territory means fresh lore potential
The prequel angle is arguably the most exciting part of all this. FromSoftware's worldbuilding is famously told through item descriptions, environmental details, and cryptic NPC monologues that players spend years decoding on Reddit. A prequel film could finally give some of that lore the explicit treatment - though knowing Garland's style, it'll probably still leave you with seventeen new questions for every one it answers.
Whether this turns out to be the video game movie adaptation we actually deserve, or another entry in gaming's long and painful theatrical hall of shame, at least the production is clearly doing its homework. Now the only question remaining is who gets cast as Melina, and whether any actor alive can deliver "Needle... in the heart of the Erdtree" with a straight face.
