We Watched Borderlands So You Don't Have To

Contains spoilers for "Borderlands"

"Borderlands" is finally in theaters, and going off the Rotten Tomatoes reviews (which are worse than we could have imagined), maybe this is one video game adaptation that should've been left in the Vault. If you fell asleep halfway through it, or you simply want to spare yourself the cost of a cinema ticket, consider this your comprehensive guide to the film and its ending.

We follow a collection of oddballs, including bounty hunter Lilith (Cate Blanchett), important brat Tiny Tina (Ariana Greenblatt), mercenary-turned-good guy Roland (Kevin Hart), the Psycho brute Krieg (Florian Munteanu), quirky Dr. Tannis (Jamie Lee Curtis), and funny mascot Claptrap (voiced by Jack Black). They're on a quest to locate the mysterious Vault, loaded with powerful technologies, and while they face stiff opposition from corporate magnate Atlas (Edgar Ramírez), they win out in the end, coming together as one big happy found family.

Unlike the Vault, there's not much hidden about "Borderlands." It's a movie where what you see is what you get, though we wanted to see what would happen if you scratched the surface. We've broken down "Borderlands" to find out what the end of the film could mean for the future of this potential franchise and for video game movies in general. That's right — we watched "Borderlands" so you don't have to. Don't say we never did anything for you.

"Borderlands" opens with some lengthy exposition concerning the Eridians, an alien race that created a Vault on the planet Pandora. It's filled with valuable technologies and can only be opened by an Eridian, though they have apparently gone extinct. Many have tried to locate this Vault to no avail. The driving force of the plot involves Atlas hiring Lilith to rescue his daughter, Tina, who just so happens to be on Pandora. With some help from Claptrap, Lilith finds Tina pretty quickly, and Tina reveals that she's the special one who can open the Vault, later explaining that she's a clone made from old Eridian blood.

Tina's already teamed up with Roland and Krieg, and the group heads off to locate the final key that'll allow them to open the Vault (Tina already has one, and, as we learn later, the Eridian functions as the third key). Lilith has some history on her homeworld of Pandora, and she meets people reminding her of her past, like Mad Moxxi (Gina Gershon) and Dr. Tannis. Unfortunately, the group fractures after Roland nearly sacrifices himself to get his friends to safety, and Tina mistakenly believes Lilith has betrayed them to Atlas. 

The separation gives Lilith and Claptrap a chance to explore her old home, which activates some of Claptrap's old programming, revealing a hologram of her mother explaining how Lilith was too special to keep on the planet. It turns out that Lilith is the one with Eridian blood who can open the Vault, and, what's more, she's actually the embodiment of the Firehawk, an Eridian deity, resulting in one fiery final showdown.

Tina and the crew learn at the Vault site that she's not the true Daughter of Eridia, with Atlas, the Lance Crimson, and a gang of Psychos there waiting for them. While Roland was previously seen getting attacked by different Psychos, he swoops in heroically, but it's Lilith with the truly spectacular hero entrance, showing off the teleportation powers that she has as the Firehawk. She starts throwing flames at Atlas' army and even temporarily provides shields for her comrades, who aid her in the fight. 

It seems like the enemy's defeated, but Atlas threatens Tina unless Lilith opens the Vault for him, so she obliges. Those technologies come in the form of a bunch of floating cubes, but the far more interesting addition is a giant monster. Atlas probably should've known not to enter a space when your opponent is your only way to escape, but that's villain logic for you. Atlas is taken away by some slimy tentacles while Lilith and Tina get out. 

The team of misfits wins out in the end, and they enjoy their victory with a firework extravaganza at Sanctuary. Lilith may have referred to Pandora as a "s***hole" at the beginning of the film and just wanted to get the job done, but she's come to appreciate her new friends. One would imagine she'll stick around on the planet for a while, and she celebrates by flying into the fireworks as the glorious Firehawk.

Lilith's character development in "Borderlands" is fairly boilerplate. She's a disgruntled bounty hunter at the start who prefers to keep to herself. While she just wants to get the job done quickly at first and bring Tina back to Atlas, she soon grows to like her wacky companions, Tina in particular. Halfway through the movie, the two share an emotional heart-to-heart where Tina explains how she's cloned from Eridian blood and how Atlas needing her is contingent on her being useful. 

It's clear that Lilith felt a similar alienation around her parental figures. She mentions barely remembering her mother since they were separated when she was young. This also factors into her initial resentment toward Dr. Tannis, who was supposed to care for her after her mother gave her up to get her off Pandora. The same way Lilith feels betrayed by Dr. Tannis, Tina naturally feels betrayed when she thinks Lilith is still working for Atlas. Of course, Lilith makes everything right at the end, and they forge a mother-daughter relationship of sorts.

In the first "Borderlands" video game, Lilith is 22 years old. Cate Blanchett is decidedly older, but her casting makes sense within this framing as a more motherly figure. Lilith's mother did what she did to protect her, and maybe now, Lilith can try to protect Tina from any future dangers. There's a full-circle element to it all that probably wouldn't have been as impactful with a younger actor.

In stark contrast to the hyper-violent video games, the "Borderlands" movie has a PG-13 rating. It still manages to pack in plenty of fight scenes and mayhem, even if it needs to tone down the gore, and the flick isn't without its share of casualties. Lilith, Tina, and the rest of the Vault Hunters make it out alive, although Roland has a quick brush with death. He stays behind to fix the wires to the elevator to get his crew out from underground and we see him overrun by Psychos. The movie lets us know pretty quickly he made it out okay by cutting back to him emerging from a pile of bodies before he heroically reunites with his friends at the Vault. 

While plenty of Psychos meet their dooms, some named characters meet grisly demises, too. This includes Commander Knoxx (Janina Gavankar), who serves as a foil for much of the film until she has a change of heart at the Vault. Before she can get into an impassioned speech, she's promptly lasered in an example of when it's good to keep your mouth shut. Atlas' army faces defeat in the finale, and Atlas himself is seemingly killed inside the Vault. Unless Atlas somehow survives the onslaught of tentacles and finds a way out of the Vault, he's for sure dead, meaning any sequels will require a new antagonist. With so many games to pull from, that shouldn't be an issue (assuming a follow-up even happens). 

When it comes to movies based on pre-existing intellectual property, a post-credits scene is an enticing proposition. It rewards people who stay through the credits and can tease something exciting to come. For "Borderlands," such a scene could've introduced a fan-favorite character from the games or set up an intriguing plot point. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be, as there's no scene after the credits — but there is a little something for audiences who stick around for a bit.

After the stylized credits end, Claptrap appears on-screen once again. He doesn't tease anything about what a potential "Borderlands 2" might look like, only declaring, "I came to dance, mofo!" He does a quick jig as the rest of the credits move upward, gradually pushing him offscreen. It's here Claptrap breaks the fourth wall about how this was meant to be his "Easter egg" before he's pushed off for good. 

Fans of the "Borderlands" video games may be disappointed that there are no actual Easter eggs or teases after the credits. Instead, we get a fun bit seemingly designed to make full use of that PG-13 rating and offer something for children to laugh at. However, depending on one's opinion of the movie, it may actually be a relief that you can get out of your seat as quickly as possible when the action ends.

While the "Borderlands" film has plenty of colorful characters from the video games, some are notably missing. A sure-fire way the movie could've gotten people talking was a cameo or post-credits scene introducing Handsome Jack, the antagonist of "Borderlands 2." Years after the first game's story, Hyperion leader Handsome Jack becomes Pandora's dictator who becomes a troublesome adversary when it comes to light Pandora is home to multiple Vaults. He's a breakout character of the series with a twisted sense of humor and boatloads of charisma.

One would imagine a theoretical "Borderlands 2" would utilize Jack as a villain, but he's not the only notable absence: "Borderlands" fans were shocked when it was revealed that Brick and Mordecai were missing. It turns out that some other "Borderlands" characters were supposed to be in the final film but had their scenes cut. Entertainment Weekly reports that Sir Alistair Hammerlock and Wainwright Jakobs had a wedding scene that didn't make it. Director Eli Roth explained, "We loved the actors. The scene itself turned out great, but in the overall mission of the film it felt like a detour that stopped the mood and then went back."

Cheyenne Jackson and Charles Babalola played Jakobs and Hammerlock, while Penn Jillette of the magic duo Penn and Teller (who has a history with the franchise, having voiced a character in "Borderlands 3") cameoed as the preacher in the wedding scene. Hopefully, that deleted scene gets released eventually so we can all see it. 

The tricky thing about video game adaptations is that a single game contains so much lore. It can often take upwards of 40 hours to complete the plot, whereas a movie only allows for a couple of hours. The film needs to satisfy fans of the game while not being esoteric enough to put off people completely unfamiliar to this universe. That may explain why the decision was made to let the movie be its own thing.

Randy Pitchford, the creator of "Borderlands," spoke with Game Rant about letting the movie exist separately. "We kind of created an alternate universe with the film," he explained. "We have our storyline, and we have where we've been and where we're headed [in the games], and that's really important to us. With the film space, instead of just recreating the exact same stories we've already done, we can play with it a little bit and try some different things."

In essence, the movie starts on the ground floor, explaining the rules of Pandora and fleshing out these characters so that anyone can follow along. It also means gamers don't need to worry about missing out on the film. That being said, there are still ample Easter eggs that eagle-eyed fans can spot. For example, the Sanctuary has a brief glimpse of a "Wanted" poster for Mick Zaford, the leader of the Zaford clan from "Borderlands 2" who's notable for his green bowler hat. It has no impact on the plot, but longtime fans may get a kick out of it. 

Does "Borderlands" lay the groundwork for a follow-up? There's more of Pandora to explore, and the Vault Hunters look like they'll stick together going forward. There are plenty of other adventures they could get into, especially if the aforementioned Handsome Jack is brought into the mix to look for more Vaults. It's possible future film installments could take a different route entirely. That's unknown at this stage, but what we do know is that Randy Pitchford envisions a Borderlands Cinematic Universe.

"This isn't 'Borderlands 1.' This isn't 'Borderlands 2.' The 'Borderlands' movie is the first of the Borderlands Cinematic Universe and you'll see some characters from some of the different parts of what you might know from the video games," Pitchford told IGN. The BCU, as it were, could certainly pick up with other characters. Lilith tends to be the protagonist of the video games, but "Borderlands 3" brings in new playable characters with Amara, FL4K, Moze, and Zane.

In the event that Cate Blanchett didn't feel like doing more "Borderlands" films, a follow-up could pick up with someone new. This first movie has already established a franchise doesn't need to follow the games precisely. The films can be more malleable, but, even so, there's no guarantee that "Borderlands 2" will happen just yet.

When Looper tried to predict the biggest box office bombs of 2024, "Borderlands" was left off the list. That may have been an oversight on our part. As of this writing, "Borderlands" is looking at a rough opening weekend. Reports suggest the movie had a budget of around $120 million, and predictions say the film may only open in the $10 to $20 million range. It would be a rough start for the budding Borderlands Cinematic Universe, and it may make Lionsgate hesitant to invest in the film franchise further. 

"Borderlands" opened against the Blake Lively-starring "It Ends With Us" as well as the horror flick "Cuckoo" with Hunter Schafer. On top of that, there's also the continuing dominance of "Deadpool & Wolverine," which blew everyone away at the box office. The Marvel movie is the closest to "Borderlands" in terms of tone and genre, as it's also a sci-fi action adventure. And, unlike "Borderlands," it actually leans into its source material's R-rated nature. 

At the time of this writing, it's still too early to say for sure whether or not the Borderlands Cinematic Universe will pan out. Who knows — "Borderlands" might bounce back based on strong word of mouth, even with a dismal Rotten Tomatoes score (we're talking 6% right now). The BCU may very well join the ranks of cinematic universes that failed miserably.

When ranking the best live-action video game movies ever, it's apparent that these adaptations have had a rough time over the years. Whether it's failing to capture the spirit of the game or bizarre stylistic choices, many of these films fail to resonate with fans or outsiders. However, there's been a shift in the last few years where many of these adaptations have surprisingly been prosperous. 

"The Last of Us" Season 1 took home a slew of Emmys. The "Sonic the Hedgehog" movies have been financial successes, even launching the spinoff series "Knuckles" on Paramount+. That's not even getting into how last year saw "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" pull in over $1.3 billion at the global box office. Combined with the critical praise of the shows "Fallout" and "Arcane," it seems the days of terrible video game adaptations are behind us, but "Borderlands" represents a return to the old ways.

To be clear: It's doubtful that anyone is less excited about "The Last of Us" Season 2 because "Borderlands" got bad reviews. One misstep doesn't mean we've been catapulted back to the days of "Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li." However, it does remind studios that making a movie or TV show based on a popular game series doesn't guarantee success, even in this new climate.

At this point, it's obvious that "Borderlands" hasn't won over many fans. Critics have trashed the movie, and general audiences seem disinterested if box office projections are any indication. Maybe it'll gain a greater following and newfound appreciation once it's available on streaming. However, going off what Cate Blanchett herself has said about the movie, maybe she knew all along this is how it would turn out. 

"I mean, it's not 'The Grapes of Wrath.' It's not 'Blade Runner,'" Blanchett told USA Today. "It's its own strange, weird thing, and when you look at the casting, there's a motley quality to it. I'm not saying 'Borderlands' is a classic! It's fun, fun, fun, but it's not 'Citizen Kane!'" There you have it. "Borderlands" is meant to be a fun time, not a best picture contender. If you have fun watching it, that's all that matters. If you don't, then you're certainly not alone in that.