Is the Fallout TV show canon? Here’s what Bethesda’s Todd Howard and the showrunners have to say
Apr. 11, 2024A spoiler-free guide to how the Prime Video TV series fits into the games
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Where some game adaptations – such asHalo– are set in their own universe and timeline, you might be surprised to discover just how entrenched Amazon’sFallout TV showis with the in-game universe of Bethesda’s RPG series.
Not only is Bethesda’s Todd Howard involved as executive producer, he and showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dwoerest have spoken at length about whether the Fallout TV show is canon.
Below, you’ll find aspoiler-free guideto just how the Prime Video series fits inside the game universe – which you can read alongside our guide to theFallout TV show timelinefor the full picture.
Is the Fallout TV show canon?
In a word, yes – the Fallout TV showiscanon to the games. It’s also the latest chronological entry in the franchise, being set in 2296. Not to spoil specifics, but it also continues on from events found in earlier titles and features familiar factions such as the Brotherhood of Steel.
“We view what’s happening in the show as canon,” Bethesda director Todd Howard toldVanity Fair. “That’s what’s great, when someone else looks at your work and then translates it in some fashion.”
“It’s a new story that comes, sort of, after the events we’ve seen in the games,” co-showrunner Wagner saidat a virtual press conference attended by GamesRadar+on why they chose not to adapt one of the earlier games in the series.
“The show is built on like 25 years of creativity and thinking and building.” Wagner added. “And we sort of thought the best thing to do is to continue that, versus retread it. Because that’s sort of what has worked with Fallout over the years. It’s traded hands, it’s changed, it’s been altered, and it’s a living thing. And yeah, we kind of felt like we ought to take a swing at trying to build a new piece on top of all of that.”
Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox
On top of that, executive producer Jonathan Nolan outlined how the TV show and games operate alongside each otherin an interview with Total Film magazine– even going as far as saying it’s “almost” like the Prime Video series is “Fallout 5.”
“Each of the [Fallout] games is a discrete story – different city, distinct protagonist – within the same mythology. Our series sits in relation to the games as the games sit in relation to each other. It’s almost like we’re Fallout 5.”
Co-showrunner Geneva Robertson-Dworetalso told SFX magazinethat there was only one hard and fast rule handed down from Todd Howard: don’t contradict the games’ major endings. So, yep, this is about as canon as it gets.
Fallout, starring Ella Purnell, Aaron Moten, Walton Goggins, and Kyle MacLachlan, is now streaming on Prime Video. For more, check out the rest of our coverage:
I’m the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you’ll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.
Green Lantern star breaks silence on upcoming DC role, teasing the “extensive” prep he’s undergoing to do the comics justice
Reacher season 3 gets first trailer, and it looks like Jack Reacher may have finally met his match
Dune 2 director Denis Villeneuve says a Zendaya scene was the moment he knew the film was working: “I did that shot and knew I had a movie”
