If you aren’t familiar with the video game it’s based on, the first series of trailers for Assassin’s Creed may seem a tad confusing. Thankfully, the newest clip, which was released on Saturday, sheds some new light on why Michael Fassbender’s Callum Lynch was abducted by a shadowy network of trained killers.
According to Jeremy Irons, who plays Rikkin of the aforementioned Knights Templar, they need Lynch's skills to obtain the Apples of Eden, an artifact that doubles as the key to saving all civilization, and one that’s at the center of the mega-popular video game franchise.
That the adaptation is sticking so closely to its source material might give some people pause, since almost every movie based on a video game kind of sucks (we’re looking at you Need For Speed). The good news is that Fassbender himself has exquisite taste when it comes to selecting projects, so that gives us hope. Another good sign? Justin Kurzel, the director of another Fassbender vehicle, the criminally underrated Macbeth, is behind the camera. Joining them is a stellar ensemble that includes Marion Cotillard, Brendan Gleeson, and Michael K. Williams, all of whom are featured pretty heavily in the new trailer.
Will that stellar pedigree be enough to separate Assassin’s Creed from the rest of its dumpster fire movies-based-on-video-games counterparts? We’ll find out, when it soars into theaters on Dec. 21. Watch the trailer above.
