Summary
WithUncharted 2officially in development at Sony, the sequel will need a new actor to take over the role of Samuel “Sam” Drake - brother of Tom Holland’s Nathan “Nate” Drake. There are severaldifferences between 2022’sUnchartedand the gamesthat inspired it, but one of the most notable is the fact thatHolland’s Nathan Drake is much younger than his digital counterpartis for the majority of the franchise. Casting Holland as the leader of theUnchartedcastresulted in other characters being aged down, explaining why Mark Wahlberg stepped into the shoes of Victor “Sully” Sullivan.
So,Uncharted 2’s Sam actor also needs to be younger than the game versionof the character - who is in his early forties when he makes his debut. Nate’s older brother has appeared only in flashbacks so far, where he was played by Rudy Pankow. However, Pankow is younger than Holland. Therefore, it wouldn’t make sense for him to play Nate’s big brother in the present day. While a grown-up Sam is glimpsed in the first movie’s post-credits scene, his face isn’t shown, and so it’s unclear who could be cast in the role. Thankfully, there are several salient options.
Uncharted 2: Confirmation & Everything We Know
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10Aaron Taylor-Johnson
The MCU’s Quicksilver would make a great Sam Drake
Fellow MCU actor Aaron-Taylor Johnson could easily portray Nate’s older brother inUncharted 2. Not only has the British actor proven to be capable of a solid American accent, but he also looks roughly like a younger version of Sam Drake from the games. His varied acting history proveshe would be able to bring Sam’s slightly grittier side to lifewhile maintaining a similar level of whimsy to that of his brother.
Taylor-Johnson has been successful in fun action adventures likeUnchartedand can be seen demonstrating the necessary skill set to play Sam Drake in theKick-Assmovies.
Taylor-Johnson has been successful in fun action adventures likeUnchartedand can be seen demonstrating the necessary skill set to play Sam Drake in theKick-Assmovies, as well as his brief visit to the MCU as Pietro Maximoff in 2015’sAvengers: Age of Ultron. Perhaps his most relevant dry run for playing Nate’s brother would be as Tangerine in 2022’sBullet Train. While he doesn’t use his American accent in the latter example, the overall vibe of the character strongly suggestsTaylor-Johnson would knock playing Sam Drake out of the park.
9Daniel Radcliffe
Nate’s brother could be played by the Harry Potter star
He may be best known for playing the title role inall eightHarry Pottermovies, but becoming famous forportraying a sibling-less character shouldn’t exclude Radcliffefrom consideration. He’s moved on to play a myriad of different characters after stepping away from his seminal role, showcasing his acting ability beyond embodying The Boy Who Lived. He may not be quite as whimsical as some of the other names on this list, but he would provide balance to the character.
In the games, Sam’s slight height advantage over Nate helps to solidify the big brother dynamic.
What’s perhaps working a little against Daniel Radcliffe is that, while he is older than Holland,he’s also shorter thanUncharted’s leading man. In the games, Sam’s slight height advantage over Nate helps to solidify the big brother dynamic. That being said, the original movie has already made so many massive changes to the source material that this may not matter.
8Liam Hemsworth
The youngest Hemsworth could be the oldest Drake
Starring in huge franchises likeThe Hunger GamesandThe Witcher, Hemsworth is a proven commodity when it comes to working well as part of an ensemble cast. Having his name on theUncharted 2poster would create an even bigger draw than the first movie - which was immensely profitable. There’s also the consideration thatLiam Hemsworth would be an excellent Sam Drake in theUnchartedmovie universe. The franchise is primarily an action-adventure story, and previous roles in his acting history support his talent in both of these subgenres.
Most recently, Hemsworth’s war movie, 2024’sLand of Bad, demonstrated two of the required facets for a prospectiveUnchartedrole.
Most recently, Hemsworth’s war movie, 2024’sLand of Bad, demonstrated two of the required facets for a prospectiveUnchartedrole. Firstly, he nailed all the action sequences, of which there are plenty in the firstUnchartedmovie. Secondly, he was the co-leader of theLand of Badcastwhile also making a strong impression. This would be a key requirement in a movie likeUncharted 2, as he’ll be required to share the screen with Holland and Wahlberg.
7Zac Efron
Efron has displayed the Drake charm for a long time
Uncharted 2seems like the perfect movie for an actor like Zac Efron. In fact, there’s probably a universe where he was cast as Nathan Drake in the first installment. Efron has established himself time and again as an actor well-versed in comedic moments as well as dramatic or action-packed sequences. While the ship may have sailed for him to shine as Nate, playing Sam Drake gives him a chance to be just as involved as Tom Holland.
Efron’s razor-sharp wit and perfect comic timing definitely bring to mind the mannerisms of the older Drake brother.
Efron’s razor-sharp wit and perfect comic timing definitely bring to mind the mannerisms of the older Drake brother, andhe would complete a thoroughly entertaining trio of himself, Holland, and Wahlberg. The fact he’s been in the public eye for longer than Holland has would also strengthen the perceived authority that an older brother has over his younger siblings, which would be a nice added touch.
6Evan Peters
Peters' varied filmography would make him a dependable Sam choice
The second Quicksilver on this list, Peters played the role in Fox’sX-Menprequel movies, but also reprised a meta version of the role inWandaVision.His superhero character is more fantastical than Sam Drakewould be inUncharted 2, but he still displayed elements of what would be required to play Nate’s brother while embodying the Marvel speedster. He’s also had much darker roles he could draw upon.
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Peters was one of the biggest names in TV for a while back in 2022 when he played serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer in a Netflix biographical true crime drama. Sure, playing Dahmer is a million miles away from portraying Sam Drake - the latter of whom has exactly zero cannibalistic tendencies - but it shows the range of Evan Peters as an actor and the vast array of tools he’d have at his disposal when bringing Sam to life.
5Joe Keery
The Stranger Things actor has served as a big brother figure throughout the show
Known most as Steve Harrington inStranger Things,Keery will surely be on the lookout for a new franchisewith which to be involved with Netflix’s iconic horror series drawing to a close. Steve’s wholesome arc inStranger Thingsfrom unfeeling teenager to big brother figure is still the best example in Keery’s career of why he would be a great choice to play Sam Drake.
For those who have only seen Keery inStranger Things, he may seem a little too “nice,” to play Sam Drake.
For those who have only seen Keery inStranger Things, he may seem a little too “nice,” to play Sam Drake. Nate’s brother isn’t evil by any stretch, but his tough luck has made him a little hardier than Nate. Luckily, Keery’s character inFargoseason 5, Gator Tillman, is a vast departure from hisStranger Thingspersona.Somewhere between Steve and Gator would be a good mix for Keery’s Sam.
4Nicholas Hoult
Hoult’s lack of typecasting would allow fans to get an untainted version of Sam Drake
Despite being in the industry since 1996,Hoult has avoided being too strongly associated with any singular character. Of course, he has reprised roles, like Beast in theX-Menmovies, but it’s not a character he has become synonymous with. This is a huge advantage when walking into a new franchise, as it means the audience can watch a performance unfold without any preconceived notions.
Hoult has an incredibly varied acting history, and while no specific role does much in isolation to support the argument that he should play Nathan Drake, each character he’s played displays certain traits that would work well when combined to breathe life into the brother of Tom Holland’sUnchartedcharacter. As another fellow Englishman,starring alongside his compatriot would create another unseen connection between Nate and Sam.
3Will Poulter
Poulter’s comedic roots would serve him well while playing Sam Drake
Like many actors in the modern age, Poulter’s career originating in comedy laid a solid foundation for his future dramatic roles. He doesn’t tend to revisit his comedic roots all too often, although he did dabble as Adam Warlock in 2023’sGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. However,his MCU debut did prove he’s still capable of tapping into his lighthearted side- which would be required if he were cast as Sam inUncharted 2.
Like many actors in the modern age, Poulter’s career originating in comedy laid a solid foundation for his future dramatic roles.
With three appearances in the show at large, Will Poulter featured in two episodes as part ofThe Bearseason 3’s cast. Although he spoke in his native British accent while playing Chef Luca, his character’s propensity for working as part of a team and supporting his fellow chefs goes some way to justifying his potential for playing Nathan Drake’s older brother in the Tom Holland sequel.
2Chace Crawford
Uncharted 2’s Sam isn’t necessarily too young for Crawford to play
Most recently known as the Deep in Prime Video’sThe Boys, Crawford is the oldest actor on this list and would arguably be more suited to playing a more game-accurate Sam Drake. If his real age were to be used forUncharted 2’s Sam, then it would create an age gap of over 10 years between the two brothers. However,Crawford could easily play younger than his real age, as he looks great for it.
While Crawford inarguably plays a villain inThe Boys, the scenes where he’s masquerading as a hero present him as a brilliant option for Sam in Sony’sUnchartedmovies.
While Crawford inarguably plays a villain inThe Boys, the scenes where he’s masquerading as a hero present him as a brilliant option for Sam in Sony’sUnchartedmovies. The Deep means Crawford has to focus more on his dark humor or false squeaky-clean image, but playing Nate Archibald inall six seasons ofGossip Girlis also a great fake audition for the more middle-of-the-road elements needed to play Sam.
1Grant Gustin
The Barry Allen actor needs a new franchise to join
After leadingall nine seasons ofThe Flashas Barry Allen - as well as having other appearances in the Arrowverse - Gustin is irreversibly tied to his version of the DC superhero. Since the show ended in 2023, he’s appeared in only one project - a movie namedPuppy Love. This may be because casting directors are worried that fans will associate him too closely with his DC persona. However,Tom Holland is arguably even more well-known for playingSpider-Manthan Gustin is for playing the Flash - and that didn’t stop Sony from finding their Nathan Drake.
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Although Uncharted did well at the box office, a sequel could present the chance to delve further into the source material of the games.
Gustin isn’t a household name, but that isn’t necessarily a requirement, as Holland and Wahlberg are already involved. What’s more important is thatGrant Gustin displayed all the attributes of an actor capable of playing Sam Drakein the upcoming sequel while portraying Barry Allen for so many years. In short, he would make an excellent addition to the cast ofUncharted 2.
