Vin Diesel Stars in ARK II and ARK: The Animated Series

The popular dinosaur-themed survival game, ARK: Survival Evolved, will be getting both a sequel in ARK II for next-gen platforms and an animated series adaptation in 2022, Studio Wildcard announced. The developer has partnered with director Jay Oliva (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns) and Vin Diesel to produce ARK: The Animated Series. But that’s not all; the Fast and Furious star has also joined the company as President of Creative Convergence, acting as executive producer of the animated adaptation and ARK II while lending his voice as a character named Santiago for both projects as well.

Written by Marguerite Bennett (DC Comics Bombshells) and Kendall Deacon Davis, ARK: The Animated Series chronicles the story of a mysterious primeval land populated by dinosaurs and other extinct creatures, where people from throughout human history have been resurrected. When 21st-century Australian paleontologist Helena Walker awakes on the ARK after a tragedy, she must learn to survive and find new allies, or die again at the hands of ruthless warlords — all while trying to uncover the true nature of their strange new world.

Regarding their decision to make an animated spin-off, the game co-creator Jesse Rapczak said this project will be a new way to depict the franchise’s epic narrative that’s mostly hidden from players’ eyes:

With ARK, we’ve always looked for new ways to tell the story. The animated series brings together some of the most talented directors, actors, and animators out there to finally depict on-screen this franchise’s epic narrative.”

ARK: The Animated Series will launch with two seasons already in production composed of 14 30-minutes episodes. Animation studio Lex + Otis is working on the project accompanied by music composer Gareth Coker (Ori and the Will of the Wisps). It features a high-profile voice cast, including:

• Madeleine Madden, as Helena Walker
• Deborah Mailman as Deborah Walker, a 21st-century Aboriginal Australian activist, and Helena’s mother
• Elliot Page as Victoria Walker, Helena’s wife, and a humanitarian aid worker
• Gerard Butler, as General Gaius Marcellus Nerva, an ancient Roman despot
• Devery Jacobs as Alasie, a peppy 17th-century Inuit teenager
• Malcolm McDowell as Senator Lucius Cassius Virilis, a manipulative aristocrat during the reign of Caesar Augustus
• David Tennant as Sir Edmund Rockwell, an egocentric 19th-century scientist
• Alan Tudyk as The Captain, a buccaneer who sails the dangerous waters around the ARK
• Michelle Yeoh as Meiyin Li the Beast Queen, a 3rd-century Chinese rebel leader
• Russell Crowe as Kor the Prophet
• Karl Urban as Bob
• Vin Diesel as Santiago, 24th-century Mek pilot, gearhead, and freedom-fighter

It’s not known whether the other casts will join Diesel in ARK II or not. Co-creator Jeremy Stieglitz added,

Being able to mix together fantastic characters from throughout human history is one of the unique joys of telling stories within the ARK universe. But more than that, this series is a deeply personal narrative about love and grief, and the ways in which those two most-powerful emotions manifest in different people. Plus, of course, taming and riding dinosaurs!”

Which one are you excited about the most? ARK II or The Animated Series? Share your thoughts below in the comments section.