Uncharted 2is the perfect opportunity to introduce the most important missing character from the games,Elena Fisher, and from Amandla Stenberg to Kathryn Newton, there are many great casting choices for the role. The firstUnchartedmovie introduced Tom Holland as Nathan Drake, Mark Wahlberg as Sully, and Sophia Ali as Chloe Frazer. It also teased Nate’s long-lost brother Sam. But Elena, the intrepid reporter who joined Nate on all his adventures in video game form, was nowhere to be seen. The post-credits scene teased her arrival when Nate and Sully were confronted by a mysterious unseen figure.
SinceSony has confirmed thatUncharted 2is in development,it’s a great opportunity to confirm that this unseen figure was Elena and bring her into the movie franchise.After the first film got Nate’s origin story out of the way, the sequel can focus on the main draw of the games: Nate’s deadly, globetrotting, fortune-hunting adventures. And those adventures would be incomplete without his trusty cohort Elena. From Elle Fanning to Rosa Salazar to Amber Midthunder, there are many great actors who could do this iconic character justice in live-action.
Uncharted 2’s Perfect Story Is The Adaptation The First Movie Really Should Have Been
Sony has confirmed a sequel to Uncharted is in development – and it’s a perfect opportunity to make the adaptation the first film should’ve been.
10Elle Fanning
Sparkling Wit
Not only is Elle Fanning a pretty close physical match for Elena’s game model and the right age to play Tom Holland’s love interest; as an actor, she can do it all.Fanning has pulled off dark dramatic roles in movies likeSomewhere,The Neon Demon, and Ben Affleck’s gangster epicLive by Night, but she’s also given more lighthearted performances in movies likeSuper 8andWe Bought a Zoo. WhateverUncharted 2throws at her, Fanning will be able to handle it.
She gave a memorable turn as Pincess Aurora in theMaleficentmovies.
Fanning doesn’t have a ton of experience in the action genre, but she does have some experience working in big-budget blockbusters. She gave a memorable turn as Princess Aurora in theMaleficentmovies. She also played the lead role of Catherine the Great in the quirky, satirical alternate-history seriesThe Great.
9Stephanie Hsu
Rising Star
Stephanie Hsu’s Oscar-nominated performance inEverything Everywhere All at Onceproves that she’d make a great Elena inUncharted 2.Combined, the two roles that Hsu played in the Daniels’ multiversal epic demonstrate the versatility required to play Elena. Her turn as neglected daughter Joy Wang showed off her ability to capture Elena’s everywoman charms and underlying humanity, while her turn as interdimensional supervillain Jobu Tupaki showed off her physicality and action chops.
She gave a hilariously unhinged performance as a reformed party animal inJoy Rideand she gave a hilariously enigmatic performance as an underground gambler inThe Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Whatever movie or TV show she pops up in, Hsu makes it better.Hsu has the comedic timing, the dramatic capabilities, and the action-hero physicality to bring Elena into live-action intheUnchartedsequel.
8Samara Weaving
Action Heroine Potential
Samara Weaving’s roles inMayhem,Scream VI, andThe Babysitterfranchise had her labeled a “scream queen.”But she subverted that archetype and threw “action hero” into the mix with her turn in the darkly comedic thrillerReady or Not. On her wedding night, as her groom’s sadistic relatives hunt her down on their massive estate, Weaving has to arm herself and keep her wits about her in order to survive. This character is as much John Rambo as she is Sidney Prescott.
In the dystopian future ofGuns Akimbo, in which the entertainment industry has been reduced to a deadly game, Weaving played the game’s deadliest player.She demonstrated her comedic abilities when she played Bill’s equally dim-witted daughter inBill & Ted Face the Music.Weaving can play a hardened killer and a comic foil – she’s perfect for Elena.
7Zendaya
Real-Life Chemistry
If the casting team behindUncharted 2wants to get meta with the casting, they could bring in Holland’s real-life partner Zendaya to play Elena.Holland and Zendaya have already demonstrated their ability to bring their real-life romantic chemistry to the screen with their performances as Peter Parker and M.J. in the MCU’sSpider-Manmovies. They could translate that same dynamic to Nate and Elena in theUnchartedfranchise for anAfrican Queen-style blend of action-adventure and romance.
Not only would it be fun to cast Zendaya for the meta angle; she’s also well-suited to the role.Zendaya is a truly great dramatic actor, as seen inChallengersand HBO’sEuphoria, but she also showed inDune: Part Twothat she can spring into action when the role requires it. She’d make Elena every bit the badass she is in the games.
6Rosa Salazar
Underdog Determination
Rosa Salazar got her start with TV roles inAmerican Horror StoryandBrand New Cherry Flavor, butshe got her breakthrough with the title role in the manga adaptationAlita: Battle Angel.Her turn as Alita proved her ability to play a badass action hero who fearlessly takes on deadly villains and keeps fighting until justice is served. But it also showed her uncanny ability to play vulnerability within those action roles. Alita’s struggle with amnesia and her relationship with her father figure felt real when Salazar played it.
She’s also very human and relatable, thanks to Salazar’s performance.
In Salazar’s hands, Alita was strangely relatable.The character might be a cybernetic super-soldier with robotic enhancements, but she’s also very human and relatable, thanks to Salazar’s performance. And if she played Elena inUncharted 2, her performance wouldn’t be hampered by giant CG eyes.
5Sydney Sweeney
Sharp and Sassy
Ever since breaking out with her iconic role as Cassie Howard inEuphoria, Sydney Sweeney has become one of the biggest rising stars in Hollywood. She’s become a renowned dramatic actor with roles inRealityandThe White Lotus, a crowd-pleasing romcom star withAnyone But You, and a “scream queen” with the horror movieImmaculate. But Sweeney has yet to play a major action hero role.
Sweeney played Julia Cornwall inMadame Web– a character who was promised to become Spider-Woman at some point in the future – but she didn’t get in on much of the action in that movie.She’d be a great choice to play Elena inUncharted 2, because she’d commit to the reality of every pulpy action-adventure situation.The role of Elena would give Sweeney a chance to prove herself as an action hero.
4Amber Midthunder
Fierce and Focused
In 2022, Amber Midthunder burst onto the scene as a new action hero with her role as Comanche warrior Naru in thePredatorprequelPrey.This movie showed off Midthunder’s ability to play a fierce action hero who doesn’t hesitate to fight an invisible alien killer,but she did so with genuine pathos and humanity. She proved inPreythat she’s just as badass as Arnold Schwarzenegger, but she’s also a much stronger dramatic actor.
If Midthunder can convincingly take on a Predator, then she could easily take on the Descendants or the Shambhala guardians in anUnchartedmovie.She demonstrated her comedic abilities inReservation Dogsand demonstrated her dramatic abilities inThe Wheel. She also made a greatPrincess Yue in the live-actionAvatar: The Last Airbender. Midthunder would be an awesome choice for Elena.
3Julia Garner
Gritty Determination
Julia Garner is one of the finest actors working today, and deserves a big blockbuster role like Elena inUncharted 2.From Terra Newell inDirty Johnto Kimberly Breland inThe Americansto Anna Sorokin in the Netflix miniseriesInventing Anna, Garner has given a bunch of incredible performances in recent years. But her most iconic role is Marty Byrde’s good-hearted, bad-tempered business partnerRuth Langmore in the crime drama seriesOzark.
Garner’s turn as Ruth proves that she’d make a fantastic Elena inUncharted 2.Ruth is a badass who won’t take any guff from anyone and won’t hesitate to spring into action if she sees a situation going south. She’s also deeply human, with the capacity to be scared and vulnerable, and she has a dry sense of humor, with plenty of biting one-liners.
2Amandla Stenberg
Independent Spirit
In the past few years, Amandla Stenberg has established herself as one of the most exciting up-and-coming stars.She anchored the powerful social commentary ofThe Hate U Givewith her nuanced, impassioned performance as Starr Carter, and that kind of moving dramatic acting is just one of the tools in Stenberg’s toolkit. She showed off her razor-sharp comedic talents in the horror satireBodies Bodies Bodiesand played a troubled teen in the musicalDear Evan Hansen.
Stenberg has also demonstrated her action-hero chops with her dual performance as twins, light-sider Osha and dark-sider Mae, in theStar WarsseriesThe Acolyte. With her dramatic abilities fromThe Hate U Give, her comedic abilities fromBodies Bodies Bodies, and her action-hero abilities fromThe Acolyte, Stenberg could play an unforgettable Elena inUncharted 2.She might even upstage Holland and Wahlberg.
1Kathryn Newton
Action Hero Ready
Kathryn Newton is mainly known for starring in quirky horror comedies likeFreaky,Abigail, andLisa Frankenstein.But in between those horror comedy projects, she’s shown off plenty of versatility in recent years. She was hilarious inBlockers,Hacks, andLady Bird. She was really moving inBig Little LiesandThe Map of Tiny Perfect Things. And she proved herself as an action hero when she played a superpowered Cassie Lang inAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
When Elena has a one-liner to deliver, Newton will get a laugh.
Newton is a good physical match for Elena, but she’s also got the comedic chops, the dramatic abilities, and the action-hero badassery to nail the character inUncharted 2. When Elena has a one-liner to deliver, Newton will get a laugh. When she expresses concern over what’s at stake, Newton will move the audience. And when she has bad guys to kill, Newton will kick ass.
Uncharted 2
Cast
Uncharted 2 is the unconfirmed sequel to the 2022 action film, Uncharted, starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg.
