Elden Ring: Filming for Alex Garland's A24 movie has apparently wrapped

Good news about the "Elden Ring" movie! As IGN reports, filming for Alex Garland's highly anticipated A24 project has apparently wrapped up.

The update comes from a now-deleted Instagram post by prop maker Sean Schofield. The photo showed, among other things, an "Elden Ring" backpack, a keychain shaped like a clapperboard, and a personal thank-you card from the producers. In his caption, Schofield expressed great enthusiasm about working on the project.

Both director Alex Garland and the executives at A24 are keeping details about the story of "Elden Ring" under wraps. In recent months, however, leaks from the set have surfaced repeatedly, showing characters such as Queen Marika, the Dung Eater, and the wizard Rogier, among others.

At least the film's cast has already been finalized. It includes Kit Connor, known for "Heartstopper" and "Warfare", as well as "Alien: Romulus" star Cailee Spaeny and Ben Whishaw. The cast also includes comedy icon Nick Offerman and "Game of Thrones" actor Jonathan Pryce. "Elden Ring" hits theaters on March 3, 2028.

A24 and Elden Ring: The Perfect Match?

"Elden Ring" is arguably one of the greatest video games of all time. It was released in 2022 and is the culmination – so far – of the extremely popular "Souls" series from developer FromSoftware. One of the game's most striking features is its cinematic presentation: epic landscapes, colossal monsters, and an unparalleled atmosphere – exactly what you'd expect from a fantasy epic designed to transport us to a foreign world.

Something like this definitely belongs on the big screen – and that's exactly what the film studio A24 thought. For many years now, this independent company has been winning over the hearts of movie lovers who want to see something different from the usual mainstream productions. "Ex Machina", "Hereditary", "The Lighthouse", "Everything Everywhere All at Once" – the titles speak for themselves. Hardly any A24 film fits into a conventional mold. The logo at the beginning of a film is practically a promise: Now things are about to get interesting!

We think it's a stroke of luck for the "Elden Ring" movie that this studio, of all places, is handling the adaptation. Because that virtually rules out one major risk: that the game's incomparable experience will be squeezed into a clichéd Hollywood mold.

The Story of Elden Ring

To understand why the story has such immense potential for the big screen, it's worth taking a look at the creators of this world. The story was penned by two absolute heavyweights of modern fantasy: Hidetaka Miyazaki, the mastermind behind the development studio FromSoftware, and George R. R. Martin, the creator of "Game of Thrones". Martin laid out the entire history, the political intrigues, and the complex family tree of the ruling divine families in advance. Miyazaki took this detailed backstory and let it culminate in a massive, unstoppable catastrophe. The result is a world that feels like a historical epic. Every crumbling castle fortress, every cursed family, and every monstrous creature possesses a profound, often deeply tragic past.

The story takes place on a vast, isolated continent called "The Lands Between". The sky above this world is dominated by a gigantic, luminous tree – the Earth Tree. It serves as the ultimate symbol of the so-called Golden Order, the metaphysical law that holds nature and life in this world together. This is also where the film's title comes into play: The Elden Ring is no ordinary piece of gold jewelry that grants power. It is a cosmic web of magical runes that dictates the fundamental laws of reality. The absolute ruler of this vast realm is Queen Marika, the Eternal. She does not act as a classically good and flawless monarch, but rather as an extremely complex, calculating figure who does not shy away from drastic measures to preserve her vision.

The actual story of the game – and presumably also of the movie – begins in a world that is already in ruins. The Elden Ring has been shattered, a traumatic historical event. The fragments of this ring – the Great Runes – pass to Marika's direct descendants. These demigods are corrupted by the unimaginable power of the runes and plunge the Interrealms into a cruel, all-encompassing war.

The mythology features formidable figures such as General Radahn, a warrior of gigantic proportions who holds up the stars in the sky, or Malenia, an undefeated swordswoman who is nonetheless consumed by an inner, destructive rot. The War of the Demigods produces no victor, but instead ruins the entire world.

Into this utterly hostile and decaying world step the story's central protagonists: the Tarnished. They are fallen warriors who long ago fell from grace and were banished. Now, a mysterious, recurring grace calls these outcasts back from exile. Their nearly impossible task is to overthrow the demigods driven mad, gather the powerful runes, and ascend the orphaned throne as the new ruler.

The narrative does not depict a classic, heroic journey featuring radiant knights, but rather portrays a grimy, merciless struggle for survival. The Tarnished are the ultimate outsiders, fighting their way through a world dominated by fanatical cults and tragically fallen gods.

The Problem with the Elden Ring Movie

It all sounds very epic and is a massive experience in the game, easily spanning hundreds of hours of play. FromSoftware's games are famous for not simply laying out the world's history. It's hidden in countless cryptic clues that players must piece together themselves. You always get the feeling: There's more to it. It's a strange world whose true scope you can only guess at.

The problem: A movie doesn't have 100 hours to work with. It will be a huge challenge to bring the story of Elden Ring to the screen in its entirety. Either you try to fit everything into 2 to 3 hours in a way that makes sense – but then the whole thing ends up feeling more like a lecture than an adventure. Or you simplify the story – at the expense of its uniqueness.

Based on Alex Garland's previous films, however, we have a good idea of which path he'll take. Garland is a director who isn't afraid to leave questions unanswered. His film "Annihilation" is a good example of this: Here, too, he relies on fascinating imagery and enigmatic events that receive no obvious explanation – thereby leaving room for interpretation. This is exactly what makes "Elden Ring" so special – and a major reason why these worlds simply won't let us go.