Nolan North is one of the most prolific voice actors of all time, lending his voice to hundreds of video games and animated series, but he didn't realize a character was supposed to be dead. That's mainly because Ubisoft told him he's still "technically" alive.
North had voiced Desmond Miles (among a few more characters) for the Assassin's Creed series. Desmond had been in five games, until the character's death in Assassin's Creed 3. It wasn't until he had gone online and came across fan reactions following the game's release that he was aware of this, however.
"That technically was Desmond's death scene, and I didn't know it," North told Fall Damage. "I found out on Twitter. 'Are you upset Desmond's dead?' And I'm thinking, what? Because there's no 'Argh!' There's nothing that you'd expect from a main character's death, although the good people at Ubisoft have told me that he's not technically dead."
Eight years after Assassin's Creed 3, in Assassin's Creed Valhalla, the actor returned to the franchise as a mysterious character named The Reader. Valhalla's ending explains that The Reader is Desmond--or the very least, his consciousness, which now lives on inside the Animus. It seems that Ubisoft creatives explained this to North years before he recorded the lines in Valhalla. Even then, it didn't seem that might have been the original plan either.
"I think the original idea was eight or nine games with Desmond," North continued. "But, as it so often goes in the entertainment industry, different developers, different creative directors come in, and they have their own way of continuing the story--and it's done very, very well."
The latest entry of the franchise, Assassin's Creed: Shadows, was released back in the spring after a handful of delays. There are also long-standing rumors about a Black Flag remake, which reportedly will be Animus-free.
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North had voiced Desmond Miles (among a few more characters) for the Assassin's Creed series. Desmond had been in five games, until the character's death in Assassin's Creed 3. It wasn't until he had gone online and came across fan reactions following the game's release that he was aware of this, however.
"That technically was Desmond's death scene, and I didn't know it," North told Fall Damage. "I found out on Twitter. 'Are you upset Desmond's dead?' And I'm thinking, what? Because there's no 'Argh!' There's nothing that you'd expect from a main character's death, although the good people at Ubisoft have told me that he's not technically dead."
Eight years after Assassin's Creed 3, in Assassin's Creed Valhalla, the actor returned to the franchise as a mysterious character named The Reader. Valhalla's ending explains that The Reader is Desmond--or the very least, his consciousness, which now lives on inside the Animus. It seems that Ubisoft creatives explained this to North years before he recorded the lines in Valhalla. Even then, it didn't seem that might have been the original plan either.
"I think the original idea was eight or nine games with Desmond," North continued. "But, as it so often goes in the entertainment industry, different developers, different creative directors come in, and they have their own way of continuing the story--and it's done very, very well."
The latest entry of the franchise, Assassin's Creed: Shadows, was released back in the spring after a handful of delays. There are also long-standing rumors about a Black Flag remake, which reportedly will be Animus-free.
Source