Doomed Xbox blockbuster Perfect Dark had “entire chapters” of performance capture work in the can before its shock cancelation this summer, according to Joanna Dark actress Alix Wilton Regan.
In an interview with TheGamer, the voice behind Dragon Age’s Inquisitor and Cyberpunk 2077’s Alt Cunningham says she recorded scenes for The Initiative’s Perfect Dark reboot over the course of several years, beginning in 2023. “Lots” was done in 2024, with work continuing in early 2025.
“To my knowledge, we were pretty far along, I’d done entire chapters of this universe,” Regan said, adding that she was shocked to learn that Microsoft was pulling the plug, with The Initiative itself also set to be closed down as part of a wave of funding cuts and layoffs.
“I was as shocked, surprised, and devastated as everyone else was when the funding was pulled, and the studio was closed,” Wilton-Regan continued, saying she learned the studio’s fate at the same time as it was announced publicly. “I did not see it coming. I was absolutely blindsided when the project was defunded,” she added. “It was devastating. So many people lost their jobs. An entire workforce was disbanded.”
A further blow would come as last-ditch talks to salvage the project also fell through — a process Wilton-Regan admits she had insider knowledge of. Interestingly, the actress mentioned that Perfect Dark may have changed in scope had it been saved, with a “slimmed-down” version ultimately seeing the light of day instead.
“I couldn’t say too much about it because I knew The Initiative was in talks to keep Perfect Dark up and running in some shape or form,” Wilton-Regan revealed. “Possibly a slimmed-down version, possibly something slightly different. But certainly, everyone was working really hard behind the scenes to bring Perfect Dark back. And then one day, I heard from the creative director that the deal hadn’t gone through, and that really everything had fallen apart, and production was fully stopping.”
A report from Bloomberg, which IGN corroborated from its own sources, previously revealed that there had been a plan to keep Perfect Dark alive via the team working on the project at Tomb Raider studio Crystal Dynamics, which had been serving as a co-developer. Leadership from both Crystal and The Initiative reportedly spent two months looking for a new publisher and funding source.
While multiple parties expressed interest, the most likely candidate turned out to be Take-Two Interactive. However, the two groups couldn’t come to an agreement, at least in part due to disagreements over long-term ownership of the property. As a result, the deal fell through, resulting in layoffs at Crystal Dynamics as all hope of the project being reinstated vanished.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Perfect Dark studio head Darrell Gallagher and director Brian Horton had now been hired by 2K to start a brand new outfit. No details have yet emerged as to what the new studio will work on, or if any other former Perfect Dark employees joined them.
As for Wilton-Regan, while she may have lost the Joanna Dark gig, this month’s big Tomb Raider reveal at The Game Awards revealed that the actress was now the official new video game Lara Croft. She’ll star in next year’s reimagining of the original Lara Croft adventure, Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, as well as all-new blockbuster Tomb Raider: Catalyst, due in 2027.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
