Key Takeaways
- A24’s Elden Ring movie budget has reportedly jumped to nearly $200 million, up from the “well over $100 million” figure reported in April 2026.
- This makes it easily the most expensive film A24 has ever produced, well ahead of its previous record-holder Marty Supreme at ~$70 million.
- The film is directed and written by Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Annihilation, Civil War), and is being shot in IMAX.
- The cast includes Kit Connor, Ben Whishaw, Cailee Spaeny, Tom Burke, Nick Offerman, Sonoya Mizuno, Jonathan Pryce, Havana Rose Liu, and more.
- Set leaks from Conwy Castle in North Wales suggest the film is at least partially a prequel set before the Shattering.
- Leaked footage has also seemingly confirmed the appearance of the Dung Eater, one of the game’s most notorious characters.
- The Elden Ring movie hits cinemas globally on March 3, 2028.
A24 has spent years building its reputation on smart, lean, prestige filmmaking — the kind of stuff that punches far above its weight at the box office for a fraction of what the big studios spend. But all of that is clearly changing, because the Elden Ring movie is shaping up to be an absolutely monster production. And we’re not just talking about the Erdtree.
According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, A24’s live-action Elden Ring adaptation is on track to cost nearly $200 million — a significant jump from the “well over $100 million” figure that surfaced back in April 2026 when production first kicked off. To put that in context, A24’s previous most expensive film was Marty Supreme at around $70 million. Before that, director Alex Garland’s own Civil War came in at about $50 million. The Elden Ring movie is sitting at nearly three times that.
The WSJ piece is actually focused on A24’s broader rise as a Hollywood powerhouse — how the studio has gone from indie darling to genuine major player, and how rivals are now scrambling to replicate its model. The Elden Ring budget figure is almost a footnote in that bigger story, but it’s the kind of number that gets the gaming and movie communities sitting up very straight.
Who Is Making the Elden Ring Movie?
The man behind the camera is Alex Garland, one of the most interesting directors working in genre filmmaking right now. His resume includes Ex Machina, Annihilation, Civil War, and 28 Years Later. He’s writing and directing the Elden Ring adaptation — and crucially, this isn’t a hired-gun situation. Garland is reportedly a genuine obsessive fan of the game, having completed around seven playthroughs before the film was ever greenlit.
According to reports, the project started because Garland showed A24’s head of film Noah Sacco the game at his London home and asked if the studio wanted to make a film out of it. Sacco’s response, per a New Yorker piece, was essentially an immediate yes. Garland subsequently wrote a 200-page script — reportedly including 40 pages of visual direction — and traveled to Japan to get approval from FromSoftware director Hidetaka Miyazaki. The fact that this is a passion project first, adaptation second, is probably the reason it’s generating so much excitement.
The film is being co-produced with Bandai Namco Filmworks and DNA Films, with George R.R. Martin — who wrote the game’s original lore — also involved as co-producer. It is the first A24 movie ever filmed for IMAX, and principal photography began in spring 2026 across the UK, with locations in Iceland confirmed for summer sequences.
Full Cast for the Elden Ring Movie
The ensemble assembled for this thing is genuinely stacked. A24 and Bandai Namco officially confirmed the following cast when production kicked off in April 2026:
- Kit Connor (Warfare, Heartstopper)
- Ben Whishaw (Skyfall, Paddington)
- Cailee Spaeny (Civil War, Alien: Romulus)
- Tom Burke (Furiosa)
- Havana Rose Liu
- Sonoya Mizuno
- Jonathan Pryce
- Nick Offerman (The Last of Us, Parks and Recreation)
- Ruby Cruz
- John Hodgkinson
- Jefferson Hall
- Emma Laird
- Peter Serafinowicz
None of their roles have been officially revealed — A24 and Bandai Namco are keeping character assignments completely locked down for now. But set leaks have already given fans a head start on the puzzle.
What Have Set Leaks Revealed?
This is where it gets really interesting for Elden Ring fans. Production has been leaking at a steady rate since filming began, and what’s surfaced has the community buzzing.
Over the summer, footage surfaced of filming at Conwy Castle in North Wales — one of the most spectacular medieval fortresses in the UK. The leaked clips showed soldiers in grey and beige armour patrolling the battlements and towers in a way that strongly suggested the iconic Stormveil Castle from the game. Separate footage from Dolbadarn Castle and Dinorwig Quarry in Wales has also surfaced, with the production reportedly covering the location in dry ice and smoke to recreate the perpetual overcast atmosphere of the Lands Between.
Earlier set photos from the Royal Naval College in Greenwich, London revealed props labelled “Stormveil,” “Leyndell Streets,” and elements pointing to the Academy of Raya Lucaria — suggesting several of the game’s major landmarks will appear in the film. Leaked footage also appeared to confirm the appearance of the Dung Eater — arguably the most disturbing NPC in the entire game — seemingly being put on display for public humiliation, which aligns with his in-game backstory. Emma Laird has also been spotted on set in what fans believe to be the role of Queen Marika.
Taken together, the leaks suggest the film is at least partially a prequel, set before the Shattering — the cataclysmic war that fractured the Elden Ring and scattered the Great Runes across the Lands Between. That would make narrative sense given how much compelling lore exists in that period, and it would also give Garland room to tell a self-contained story without needing to adapt the entire game’s events.
Can A24 Pull This Off at This Budget?
It’s a legitimate question. A24’s previous biggest theatrical hits — Civil War at $127 million worldwide and Marty Supreme clearing $180 million globally — were both successes, but for a nearly $200 million production to turn a profit, industry experts generally suggest it needs to clear somewhere in the range of $450-500 million globally once you factor in marketing and distribution costs. That’s a very different ask than anything A24 has attempted before.
But the ingredients are there. Elden Ring sold over 30 million copies and has one of the most dedicated and vocal fanbases in gaming history. Alex Garland as director is the right creative bet. The cast is excellent. The IMAX commitment signals genuine ambition. And the fact that it’s a prequel — rather than a strict adaptation of the game’s sprawling, often deliberately obscure plot — means it can be understood and enjoyed by audiences who have never touched a controller.
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