Ubisoft's Two Golden Rules for Netflix's Splinter Cell Revealed: Love the Character, Respect the IP
John Wick writer Derek Kolstad pulls back the curtain on how his run on Splinter Cell compares with the Marvel Studios grind — and why that contrast is reshaping his next moves.
Ubisoft gave Derek Kolstad way more breathing room on Splinter Cell: Deathwatch than you might expect. And yes, that surprised me too. He talked to GamesRadar+ about how much freedom he had building this new Netflix series around an older, grumpier Sam Fisher.
Less tunnel, more runway
Kolstad is realistic about working with big, existing franchises: there are always guardrails. He would know. On Marvel's The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, where he wrote two episodes, he says it felt like operating inside a very rigid tunnel. Fun toys, tight space. With Ubisoft, though, he was the creator and showrunner on Deathwatch, and the vibe was different from day one.
His pitch was simple and a little bold: set the show years after the games, pull a retired Sam Fisher back into the field, and let the story live with that mileage. Ubisoft's response was basically: cool, go make that.
'The only guardrails were love the character, respect the IP. They just let me run.'
That is some notably chill oversight for a flagship gaming brand. Also worth noting: the job titles matter. At Marvel, he was a writer in a massive machine. Here, he's the one steering the car.
Who is Sam this time?
Liev Schreiber is stepping into the night-vision goggles as Sam Fisher, replacing the iconic Michael Ironside. It is an older Sam story by design, and the series plants itself well after the events of the games, with Fisher yanked back out of retirement. If you want to see how that lands, you won't be waiting long: Splinter Cell: Deathwatch hits Netflix on October 14.
- Series: Splinter Cell: Deathwatch (Netflix)
- Creator/Showrunner: Derek Kolstad
- Setting: Years after the games, with an older Sam Fisher pulled out of retirement
- Star: Liev Schreiber as Sam Fisher (taking over from Michael Ironside)
- Release date: October 14
- Kolstad on control: Marvel felt tightly controlled; Ubisoft took a lighter touch
- Key context: Kolstad wrote two episodes of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier; here, he had far more say