Death Stranding 2’s Elle Fanning Opens Up on Secret Avatar Connection

It’s been yet another stellar year for gaming, to the point where I don’t quite know which titles will successfully nab GOTY nominations; there are so many worthy contenders. Kojima Productions’ Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is one of them, landing on PlayStation 5 earlier this year, garnering rave reviews in the process.

Here at GAMINGbible, we awarded the title a score of nine, with Richard Lee Breslin declaring, “Death Stranding 2: On the Beach deserves to be in the Game of the Year conversation. It’s hands down one of my favourite games in recent years.”

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach introduces players to a new character by the name of Tomorrow, portrayed by the fantastic Elle Fanning. I won’t delve too far into the role that Tomorrow plays within the story as, fair to say, that’s something best experienced as the game unfolds. I can, however, tell you that I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Elle and had to ask about her involvement in Hideo Kojima’s latest masterpiece

Elle will soon be seen in Predator: Badlands where she portrays Weyland-Yutani Corporation synthetic Thia. Director of Prey (2022) Dan Trachtenberg returns to helm this project which poses the question: What happens when the predator becomes the prey? It follows outcast Predator Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) who, stranded on the harsh and volatile planet of Kalisk, finds an unlikely ally in Thia as the duo seek out the “ultimate adversary”.

Predator: Badlands, Credit / 20th Century Studios

Trachtenberg and Kojima, I feel, share a similarity in that you might describe them as visionaries. Both work within unique worlds that demand an actor’s trust and acceptance of a particular vision. I was curious to learn whether that can be a difficult process when I sat down to talk to Elle, who revealed an interesting Avatar connection to Death Stranding 2 in the process.

“That is [difficult], kind of. You know, I talked with Dan before, about lots of things, but he's so sure in his vision, and I think that that confidence is what gains your trust in my case, in a way,” Elle said. “He's so sure, and he has created this world completely, and he's a fan himself, you know, he's been a fan of these from such a young age. He's watched all the Predator films, so I feel like he also has a pulse on what the fans want and where the franchise needs to go next.”

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach, Credit / Sony Interactive Entertainment

“With Hideo, I mean that was, gosh, he's such a visionary too,” Elle added. “I've never done motion capture, so we got to use the same place where they filmed Avatar and did that for the first time, but yeah, you do have to trust. I also think with every great visionary, it's like they don't just tell you [the vision]; it's a collaboration, and that's what makes both of them [visionaries]. They want your ideas, Hideo and Dan.”

“Dan is so much like that on set, and he's not just all about the look. He's a real film buff too. He loves iconic movie moments and he's referencing Jaws and all these lines that are iconic and so he cares about the scenes and the acting and that emotional core just as much as the action - and he can pull off both, which not a lot can.”

Predator: Badlands will be released in cinemas from 7 November.