Fallout's Creative Team Decided Puppets Were More Frightening Than CGI Monsters

Computer-generated imagery (CGI) has come a long way, and some of it is almost indistinguishable from traditional practical effects like puppets and makeup. Still, there's nothing quite like being able to act opposite something that's actually there. It can be difficult to pretend to be afraid of a tennis ball on a stick when you're supposed to be cowering in front of some kind of gnarly monster, but thankfully, the folks behind the "Fallout" Prime Video streaming series seem to understand that, when in doubt, puppets are where it's at. 

In a preview of "Fallout" season 2 for Empire Magazine, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, who serves as the series' co-showrunner alongside Graham Wagner, revealed that the "Fallout production team has tried to use practical effects whenever possible. That includes the massive Deathclaw monsters, which fans of the "Fallout" video games have been dying to see in action. After all, there's nothing quite like the first time you get launched into oblivion by a Deathclaw's swipe in any of the "Fallout" games, and knowing those claws are real should make the TV series version that much more impactful. Not only that, but the series' actors had something to act with, and apparently, the Deathclaw puppet was as terrifying as its pixelated counterpart.

The massive Deathclaws, which are kind of like horned, reptilian rancors that never miss leg day, were a unique challenge to create with puppetry, requiring four puppeteers and some digital tweaking courtesy of the folks at Industrial Light & Magic to make it all seamless. But despite that level of complexity, Robertson-Dworet maintained that the show's creatives felt like the only way to do the monsters justice was by actually making puppets of them:

"We do things practically whenever possible. We want things to be tactile and tangible. It was only by using puppets, that are quite scary when you see them in person, that things feel deeply real."

Using a mix of practical and digital effects seems to be the best way to make the imaginary feel real on our screens, whether it's an alien species on a "Star Wars" show or a mutated reptile monster hungry for flesh on "Fallout." Not only does having the practical element help the series' digital effects teams correctly account for lighting and the size of a particular monster, but it also definitely aided the "Fallout" actors with getting into character. "I'm excited about being scared [by the Deathclaw puppets]," as Walton Goggins, who plays the enigmatic and charismatic Ghoul, told Empire. For sure, a little real fear makes acting a whole lot easier, and it sounds like the Deathclaws are truly horrifying. We'll have to wait until "Fallout" season 2 hits Prime Video on December 17, 2025, to see these monsters in full, but it should be well worth the wait.