EntertainmentTVAction ShowsFalloutIs the Fallout TV show canon? Here’s what Bethesda’s Todd Howard and the showrunners have to sayWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
EntertainmentTVAction ShowsFalloutIs the Fallout TV show canon? Here’s what Bethesda’s Todd Howard and the showrunners have to sayWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Prime Video)
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?
(Image credit: Prime Video)
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.”
“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.”
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(Image credit: Prime Video)
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:
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
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4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4
Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
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5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”