D&D Movie/TV (Yet another) D&D Movie Speculation thread.

[generic]

You still haven't understood the real issue. The political climate has changed, even since Thor 2. Enough people know that drow are supposed to be black that you would be accused of "whitewashing" and thereby "denying jobs to black actors".

Really?

How many members of the audience do you truly suspect know that much about D&D?

The film will have to appeal to a mass market, which I believe you have admitted, and the average moviegoer won't give a flying fig about how Drow should have been depicted.

IMHO, the average viewer isn't as aware of D&D lore as you think they will be.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Really?

How many members of the audience do you truly suspect know that much about D&D?

The film will have to appeal to a mass market, which I believe you have admitted, and the average moviegoer won't give a flying fig about how Drow should have been depicted.

IMHO, the average viewer isn't as aware of D&D lore as you think they will be.

The "members of the audience" aren't the problem. It's the noisy internet demagogues who will persuade people not to get as far as being in the audience if they sense an opportunity to use a film to make their political point.

 

[generic]

The "members of the audience" aren't the problem. It's the noisy internet demagogues who will persuade people not to get as far as being in the audience if they sense an opportunity to use a film to make their political point.

What internet demagogues do you refer to?

Honestly, I don't think that politicians and activists pay that much attention to D&D (in general).

Of course, I'm not an expert in political maths.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Do you know what would be funny? Maybe there is not a D&D movie but a "Birthright" teleserie like a clone of "Game of Thrones" but with the right story it could be a blockbuster.

Let's remember the serie "Hercules" played by Kevin Sorbo and "Xena" produced by the same company. Sometimes is to find the right way.

D&D is a franchise and a potential hook, but Warner Bros could create its own fantasy IP, maybe Skartaris, the world of the comic "Warlord". Even this Skartaris could the home of a Sword & Sorcery version of lesser famous DC superheroes, with cartoon adaptation and all about this. Or Warner Bros could buy copyrights of Gary Gygax's "Dangerous Journeys" for a new movie saga.

Other possibility is Adlatum the third continent of Krynn like a "playtesting".

 

[Sadras]

What internet demagogues do you refer to?

Honestly, I don't think that politicians and activists pay that much attention to D&D (in general).

The latest Vampire V5 Camarilla book by White Wolf says hello...

 

[Parmandur]

The latest Vampire V5 Camarilla book by White Wolf says hello...

That was driven by the book being garbage that alienated the customers, not some political conspiracy. If a corporation discovers that their employees are actively harming the bottom line repeatedly, their future employment prospects grow grim. Nothing political about it: bad product leads to failure, particularly in a situation with accountability.

 

[Sadras]

That was driven by the book being garbage that alienated the customers, not some political conspiracy. If a corporation discovers that their employees are actively harming the bottom line repeatedly, their future employment prospects grow grim. Nothing political about it: bad product leads to failure, particularly in a situation with accountability.

I believe we have our lines crossed...
We are talking about internet demagogues/activists jumping on an opportunity to use a roleplaying product to push a political agenda.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Really?

How many members of the audience do you truly suspect know that much about D&D?

Hey, I know D&D is primarily a hobby for white guys in the USA, but we gamers of color DO exist. FWIW, too many white actors in dark makeup could also be an issue for some.

These issues are not insurmountable: Defiance’s Omec didn’t raise a peep, nor did ST’s Klingons going from NG forward. Why? Because they cast actors of all races, including persons of color.

Potentially the bigger danger is not so much accusations of whitewashing or blackface, but the “of COURSE the dark-skinned guys are the villains” issue. Especially if the good guys are largely light-skinned. But that’s going to be raised mostly by the fringe and unlikely to gain much traction since, as written, Drow don’t share any real commonality with RW cultures of darker skinned people.

 

[Parmandur]

I believe we have our lines crossed...
We are talking about internet demagogues/activists jumping on an opportunity to use a roleplaying product to push a political agenda.

Right, which isn't related to the Vampire fiasco, which was about quality control of bad product. Vampire isn't my scene, or to my tastes, and I'm not a "political activist" by any means, so as a detached observer I saw no political demagoguery in play as the book was so bad it managed to offend people from every edge of the spectrum. As such, it is a bad example of supposed "political activism" in the industry or fandom.

 

[Parmandur]

Hey, I know D&D is primarily a hobby for white guys in the USA, but we gamers of color DO exist. FWIW, too many white actors in dark makeup could also be an issue for some.

These issues are not insurmountable: Defiance’s Omec didn’t raise a peep, nor did ST’s Klingons going from NG forward. Why? Because they cast actors of all races, including persons of color.

Potentially the bigger danger is not so much accusations of whitewashing or blackface, but the “of COURSE the dark-skinned guys are the villains” issue. Especially if the good guys are largely light-skinned. But that’s going to be raised mostly by the fringe and unlikely to gain much traction since, as written, Drow don’t share any real commonality with RW cultures of darker skinned people.

Honestly, the skin tone is less of an issue (since they can change that) as the evil race of cursed evil people ruled by evil women who enslave effete men and worship BDSM demons. Like, there is so much not OK here before we get to the "Mark of Cain" weirdness. It's a bundle of uncomfortable pulp tropes that have not all aged super well.

Still, it could be salvaged... carefully...