A terrifying yet beautiful alternate universe where the Art Deco style of the 50s persists in a world of robots and nuclear-powered cars. This is the setting for Prime Video’s brand-new series, Fallout, and what a few lucky (or unlucky) survivors must endure.
Inspired by the beloved gaming franchise, Fallout — the series — is set to tell an entirely new story, cloaked with the same brutal beauty that’s been crafted and innovated upon for decades. In this timeline, America is twisted and irradiated — but a few people (and one especially good boy) are set on survival.
Let’s break down what we know so far about the show’s cast and characters, what inspired them, and see if we can figure out who will survive Fallout once it drops on Prime Video on April 11.
Lucy (Ella Purnell)
The Vault Dweller. Lucy’s one of our main characters in the Fallout series, having the unfortunate task of stepping out of Vault 33 and into a world that went to hell long before she was born. Lucy isn’t based on any character in the game — she’s based on the character. She’s you. We’re going to see this world through her eyes, tense about what lurks behind every corner and under every hatch.
Now, Lucy’s no punk. You can expect her to have that mix of resourcefulness, naivety, and a knack for getting into less-than-ideal situations that anyone with a hint of wanting to survive post-apocalyptic carnage will need. Whatever is in store for Lucy, she’ll need to be locked in — there’s no restarting the game when it all goes downhill.
The Ghoul (Walton Goggins)
For those who don’t know, Ghouls are Fallout’s cursed souls, humans twisted by radiation into rotting parodies of themselves. Some are feral; nothing but ravenous husks. Others, like seemingly our main man The Ghoul, might retain their minds under their mutated exterior — or at least some warped part of them.
Based on the pure vibe from the trailer, there’s a good chance he could join the ranks of ghoul icons beloved by gamers, but for an entirely new, television audience. Walton Goggins is never one to phone it in; he shows up, and he’s set to make The Ghoul one of TV’s most defining characters of 2024.
Maximus (Aaron Moten)
Maximus is a member of the Brotherhood of Steel. This militaristic faction, clad in iconic power armour, are hell-bent on preserving technology from before, by pretty much any means necessary. Since he’s a Brotherhood soldier, expect Maximus to be driven by a rigid sense of duty, struggling to uphold ideals in a chaotic post-apoc world. Only time will tell if he is a true believer in the Brotherhood or just another cog in a broken machine.
CX404: Man’s Best Friend, Post-Apocalypse Edition
Any lover of the Fallout games will tell you that a canine companion is part of what makes it so iconic. Prime Video isn’t depriving us of that, and now we’ve Fallout‘s got a new mutt joining the pack, CX404.
We don’t know too much about this dystopian doggo, but it’s hard to see anyone else being the fan-favourite from this series.
Overseer Hank
No Vault’s complete without its little dictator-in-the-making, and Prime Video’s Fallout series isn’t breaking tradition. Overseers can be mixed bags — some saviours, some straight-up tyrants, and more than a few utterly insane from the power trip. What we do know about Overseer Hank is that this guy is eager to change the world for the better, or so it seems.
Oh, and he’s also Lucy’s Dad, which should make for an interesting dynamic, to say the least.
The Rest of the Damned
The trailer’s been dripping with glimpses of the wasteland’s greatest hits: ragged scavengers, Brotherhood of Steel knights, and creatures who’d make the lord himself weep from the shame of what he has created. We’re probably bound to see a whole host of wasteland weirdos — the Fallout experience isn’t complete without the deranged hermits, delusional cultists, and merchants selling irradiated junk one encounters on their cursed way.
Judging by the trailer, the show is well set to deliver on the freaks and weirdos who make the wasteland what it is.
A Familiar Dystopia, A Fresh Hell
It’s crucial to remember that Prime Video’s Fallout TV series is its own beast. This is by no means a straight-up adaptation. Prime Video is carving its own path in the beloved radiated cursed world we love so dear, with an entirely new storyline.
With a new storyline means new blood in the wasteland new betrayals, new twists, new FREAKS — which is perfect.
So sit back, grab a Nuka-Cola, and strap in, freaks. We’re heading out into the wasteland. All episodes of Fallout Season 1 launch exclusively on Prime Video on April 11 — start your 30-day free trial today — T&Cs apply.
