The following contains spoilers for Borderlands, now playing in theaters
Summary
- Lilith’s powers develop throughout the film and are only revealed fully in the climax, a departure from the games.
- Lilith’s direct connection to the Vault is original and important in the cinematic version.
- Characters and relationships significantly differ between the Borderlands film and the original games.
Borderlands takes some liberties with the source material and makes several notable changes from the games. Based on the video game franchise of the same name, Borderlands takes many of its visual cues and character concepts directly from the games. However, while many of them look like accurate reinterpations of Borderlands‘ cast of colorful characters, their roles in the story and unique abilities are changed to fit a new narrative.
Set on the world of Pandora, the main group of heroes actually pulls from multiple titles in the franchise. By the ending of Borderlands, these tweaks in the origins and scale of the unique powers sets up a very different role going forward. Here are the biggest differences between Borderlands and the games that inspired it.
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10 Lilith’s Siren Powers Don’t Come Until Late In The Film
Lilith Doesn’t Reach Her Siren State Until The Climax
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Borderlands makes a number of changes to the story and characters of the original video game, including the way it portrays Lilith. In the film, Lilith is initially portrayed as a bounty hunter with no special abilities. However, her connection to the Vault Key steadily unlocks her abilities, which build to her unlocking her full potential in the climax. In the original game, Lilith has some of her abilities from the on-set of her adventures on Pandora.
Her powers aren’t directly considered the reincarnation of a deity like in the movie. Instead, she is one of the Sirens, a group of seemingly unconnected women from across the cosmos with unique abilities. The movie Lilith is far more powerful Although Tannis refers to her briefly as a Siren, it’s not clear if there are others like her openly in the universe. Lilith’s movie powers are also far more impressive than her game abilities.
9 Daughters Of Eridia Are Needed To Open The Vault
Only Lilith Can Open The Vault
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One of the big turns of Borderlands‘ plot is the reveal that only a “Daughter of Eridia” can open the Vault. This is why the genetically modified Tina is so important to Atlas’ plans, and allows the empowered Lilith to open the Vault after realizing her full potential. However, the idea that Lilith’s powers and ability to open the Vault stem from her role as a “Daughter of Eridia” is original to the film. In the games, Lilith is one of several Sirens, who are rare in the universe but not to the point seen in the film.
In the games, having a Vault Key is all that’s necessary to open a Vault. The events of Borderlands and Tales from the Borderlands saw Vaults opened by people without Siren abilities. The change to make only “Daughters of Eridia” capable of opening the Vault in the film makes Lilith and Tina’s role more important, and brings a “chosen one” element to their arc that was largely absent from their initial storylines.
8 Lilith & Roland’s Team Is Really Different
Two Original Main Characters Aren’t In The Film
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The main Vault Hunters of Borderlands and the first Borderlands video game are different. The only main characters in both versions are Lilith and Roland, although the film makes Lilith into a far more important character. The other two playable characters are fellow Vault Hunters Mordecai and Brick, who are absent from the film. Conversely, the rest of the film’s Vault Hunters weren’t the heroes of the original game.
Tiny Tina was a supporting character introduced in Borderlands 2, although she’s risen in popularity since then. She also developed a close bond with Brick, the kind of connection that was transferred over to Tina and Krieg in the film. The Krieg of the games was obsessed with Borderlands 2‘s Siren Maya, which set up his decision to work with Vault Hunters instead of just trying to kill them. Tannis was an important supporting character for most of the series, but has never been a playable member of the party.
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7 Claptrap Is An Actual Member Of The Party
Claptrap Doesn’t Have A Deeper Connection To Lilith
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Claptrap is effectively the mascot for the Borderlands franchise, and plays a key supporting role in Borderlands. However, his role in the cinematic and video game versions are very different. In the games, Claptrap serves as a guide to the world of Pandora and gives side-missions to the players. His ambitions set off plenty of chaos across the games, but he’s rarely directly involved in the action of the game plots.
In Borderlands, Claptrap gets a much more active role. Claptrap has a direct connection to Lilith instead of being one of the native characters on Pandora. He takes part in much of the action, with his endurance making him a pivotal figure in withstanding attacks from bandits. Claptrap also helps reveal the truth behind Lilith’s origins, setting up the eventual embrace of her Siren powers. Claptrap actually getting to be a part of the story is a big departure from the original games.
6 Tannis’s Age And Connection To Lilith Are Different In The Movie
The Movie Tannis Is An Aunt-Like Figure For Lilith
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Played by Jamie Lee Curtis in Borderlands, Tannis plays a supporting role in the film. After giving the group important information on how to track and unlock the Vault, she accompanies them for the second half of the film. However, the Tannis of the video games and the Tannis of the film are very different. While they share a number of character tics, the game version of Tannis is about the same age as the rest of the cast.
As a result, she lacks the established relationship the cinematic version of Tannis shares with Lilith. The two play very different roles in their respective stories. While the game Tannis is a dedicated ally in Borderlands 2 and Borderlands 3, she doesn’t venture into the field alongside the Vault Hunters as quickly as her cinematic version does.
5 Tina’s Origins Are Completely Different
The Original Tina Doesn’t Have Any Atlas Connections
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While the surface-level design and love for explosives is present in both versions of Tina, the cinematic take on the character has a far different backstory than her game counterpart. In Borderlands, Tina is a genetically modified clone, created by Atlas with trace amounts of Erridian blood. This supposedly makes her a “Daughter of Erridia,” which means she could open the Vault. This would allow Atlas to claim the ancient technology and resources hidden within. It’s also implied there are other clones out there of Tina.
This is a far cry from the games, where Tina was just another citizen of Pandora. Introduced in Borderlands 2, Tina grew up with her parents until they were sold to Hyperion for experimentation. Escaping and living in the wilds on her own, Tina became a reoccurring minor character in the original games. Tina never had a direct connection to Atlas like she does in the film, and was never mistaken for having some grand destiny within the universe.
4 Larry Isn’t In The Games At All
Bobby Lee Plays An Entirely New Character
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Many of the characters who appear in Borderlands have direct parallels with figures from the original games. However, one minor role is completely invented for the film, and is used to flesh out some of Roland’s backstory with the Crimson Lance. Played by Bobby Lee, Larry is a minor member of the Crimson Lance who appears about halfway through the film. An old friend of Roland, he still tries to capture him for Atlas and spots Claptrap, forcing the group to abandon Sanctuary.
Larry is an original character made for the film and doesn’t have any exact analog with any of the game’s cast. Instead, it appears the character was created to give someone the chance to bounce off Roland. Played by Kevin Hart, Roland is played as a more jokey character than he was in the original Borderlands games, where he was a more straight-faced counter to the more absurd characters around him.
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3 Atlas Actually Shows Up
The Atlas CEO Wasn’t The Villain Of The Game
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Played by Édgar Ramírez in Borderlands, Deukalian Atlas is the primary antagonist of the film. The head of a powerful gun manufacturer, Atlas seeks the Vault and all the dangerous weaponry that he believes it contains. He is the motivator for the plot, having cloned Tina to unlock the Vault and subsequently hiring Lilith to find her. However, Atlas as he appears in the film is a largely original invention for the film.
In the original Borderlands games, Atlas is one of the many companies that produce weapons and shields. Atlas also has control of the Crimson Lance, with their forces serving as a major threat throughout the first Borderlands game. However, there is no notable CEO character who controls the organization. Deukalian bears more than a little resemblance to Handsome Jack, who was introduced in Borderlands 2 as the head of the Hyperion Corporation and became one of the franchise’s most enduring villains.
2 Knoxx Doesn’t Switch Sides
Knoxx Was Really Changed For The Film
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Played by Janina Gavankar, Commander Knoxx is one of the leaders of the Crimson Lance and serves directly under Atlas in Borderlands. It’s implied she used to have a relationship with Roland, and is reluctant to kill him even while hunting him down. She ultimately tries to switch sides in the film’s third act, but is quickly disintegrated by Atlas. This is a far cry from the Knoxx who appeared in the original Borderlands game.
In the games, Knoxx was confronted by the player characters in the DLC mission “The Secret Armory of General Knoxx.” An older man and committed member of the Crimson Lance, Knoxx never has a change of heart and doesn’t appear to have any deeper connection to Roland. He is ultimately killed by the Vault Hunters. Knoxx in the film is more similar to Commandant Steele, a young woman who has a command position in the Crimson Lance in the firrst game. However, she also doesn’t have a change of heart, and is killed by the monster in the Vault.
1 There’s Only One Vault
A Single Vault Changes The Scope Of The Franchise
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One of the big plot points of Borderlands is that there’s only one Vault that can be accessed, making the mission across Pandora all the more important. While that does track with the way the Vault was treated in the original Borderlands, later games in the series have underscored the sheer scope of the Vaults across the cosmos. It turns out there are multiple Vaults on Pandora alone. On top of that, there are plenty of other worlds in the universe that also have Vaults.
It’s possible that more Vaults were being saved for a prospective sequel, giving the heroes reasons to travese the galaxy and go in search of them. It could also be used as an easy means of introducing other Vault Hunters, bringing missing characters from the Borderlands games into the film universe. The Vaults being spread out deepens the lore and widens the universe of Borderlands in some exciting ways, so tweaking the film to only have one established Vault feels limiting in a way that follow-ups could help resolve.
Borderlands 
3.5
Based on the video game franchise, Borderlands is a sci-fi action-comedy film that follows Cate Blanchett as Lilith, a treasure hunter who returns to her home planet, Pandora, to find a tycoon’s missing daughter. Together with a group of unlikely allies, such as a soldier, a teenaged demolitions expert, a wise-cracking robot, and an eccentric scientist, the group will work together to save the girl – all while learning to deal with each other’s unyielding quirks.
Director Eli Roth Release Date August 9, 2024 Studio(s) Arad Productions , Picturestart Writers Eli Roth , Joe Crombie Cast Cate Blanchett , Kevin Hart , Jack Black , Ariana Greenblatt , Florian Munteanu , Jamie Lee Curtis , Edgar Ramirez , Gina Gershon Franchise(s) Borderlands Expand