D&D Movie/TV Hugh Grant To Play Villain in the D&D Movie

Paul Farquhar · Mar 5, 2021

Sunsword said:
This casting worries me. I just don't understand why they don't adapt The Halfling's Gem?

Because it's isn't very good. It's better than most D&D novels, but that's because most D&D novels are terribad.

Sunsword said:
I assume it's some kind of rights issue or an unwillingness to pay Salvatore.

Rights belong to WotC. Don't need to pay Salvatore anything. Major downside for writers writing for someone else's IP.

hopeless · Mar 5, 2021

I doubt this is about Abrams 25% difference, but more on developing something new than trying to turn however popular that novel is into a movie where you know they will complain about it even if its done properly!

TaranTheWanderer · Mar 5, 2021

I thought this was slightly relevant from Penny Arcade:

Mister Joneser - Penny Arcade

Videogaming-related online strip by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins. Includes news and commentary.

www.penny-arcade.com

Oofta · Mar 5, 2021

TaranTheWanderer said:
I thought this was slightly relevant from Penny Arcade:

Mister Joneser - Penny Arcade

Videogaming-related online strip by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins. Includes news and commentary.

www.penny-arcade.com

View attachment 133717

I'd say yes and no. D&D does have a very specific take on magic and monsters that's unique. Wizards are incredibly powerful, but so are warriors. Clerics do more than chant and say vague prayers of blessings and so on. Some iconic monsters are pretty unique to D&D.

Besides, what did the MCU really have to go from? I mean, yes, there are a ton a comics to pull from but the same can be said for D&D stories, campaign settings and novels. How many people really knew much about Tony Stark before the first Iron Man movie?

hopeless · Mar 5, 2021

I did, but then one of my most popular memories was picking up an Avengers comic from a store near what was then Warley Hospital.
Back then that was an almost unheard of event!
Being able to buy a comic for me.

OB1 · Mar 5, 2021

Mort said:
The guys they got to write it have a solid track record, which while not dispositive, isn't nothing.

And as someone else mentioned above, the studio loves the script and is fast tracking it. Which again, isn't everything - but it's not a bad sign.

And an even better sign is the level of cast that the script is attracting. It reminds me of Pirates of the Caribbean (and remember that pirate movies were considered automatic flops back then and people derided the idea of making a film based on a Disney ride) attracting Johnny Depp, Geoffry Rush, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightly. Also like that film, the D&D movie is getting a prime May release date.

BookTenTiger · Mar 5, 2021

Here's what I'm hoping for the plot:

All these actors play themselves filming a movie. In between work days, they get together to play D&D. Hugh Grant, playing himself, keeps bullying all the other actors because they enjoy such a nerdy game. "Chris Pine? Hm, um, well, more like Chris Pining After Your Mom!"

Of course, all the actors on set are shy, tongue-tied, and can't stand up for themselves.

In their D&D game, the actors also play their characters. Unlike their real-life selves, they are confident, suave, and capable. Hugh Grant plays the pompous, evil villain.

By the end of the film, Chris Pine's D&D crew has gained enough confidence to stand up to that bully Hugh Grant. "Hugh Grant? More like Hugh Grants-Disadvantage-On-Charisma-Checks!" It turns out he's been mean on along just because he was jealous and wanted to join the D&D game!

There's a post-credits scene that teases the plot of the sequel: Chris Pine finds out his players are getting poached by another DM- Chris Evans and his team of Avengers actors!

Yep, I'm pretty sure that's it!

Ralif Redhammer · Mar 5, 2021

Absolutely. My very first D&D character was named Fairblade. I can vividly remember a kid that showed up at lunchtime to play wanting to name his character "Ding-Dong Farty Marty."

Whizbang Dustyboots said:
Let's be honest, aren't most first D&D character names kind of terrible?

Now, at the tail-end of a meandering series, it's easy to forget that the first Pirates of the Caribbean was a gamble, and many were downright skeptical. And that it was an unabashed success when it came out.

OB1 said:
And an even better sign is the level of cast that the script is attracting. It reminds me of Pirates of the Caribbean (and remember that pirate movies were considered automatic flops back then and people derided the idea of making a film based on a Disney ride) attracting Johnny Depp, Geoffry Rush, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightly. Also like that film, the D&D movie is getting a prime May release date.

Mort · Mar 5, 2021

Ralif Redhammer said:
Now, at the tail-end of a meandering series, it's easy to forget that the first Pirates of the Caribbean was a gamble, and many were downright skeptical. And that it was an unabashed success when it came out.

Right. Same for the Marvel universe - It's a juggernaut now, but Iron Man (I guess who can argue it started with The Hulk but Iron Man is the agreed starting point to the MCU) was far, far from a sure thing.

We're talking a C-D list superhero (Marvel couldn't use it's own A list heroes the movie rights weren't theirs!) and an actor who was, at best, thought of as unreliable. But they hit lightning in a bottle and well look at them now.

But that's going way ahead - here's to hoping they make a movie that's at least good!

OB1 · Mar 5, 2021

My take on a perfect opening.

INT - Swank NY Apartment Kitchen - Night

HUGH GRANT is finishing preparation of a large charcuterie board. He takes it and a bottle of wine to a large dinning room table, where CHRIS PINE, MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ, REGE-JEAN PAGE, SOPHIA LILLIS, and JUSTICE SMITH all sit chatting. The table has books, paper, and miniature figures scattered about. Hugh sets down the food and wine and takes his place at the head of the table, behind a cardboard screen with a picture of a dragon on it.

HUGH
Right, so, in our last session, our heroes had descended deep into the ruins of Ortathire...

INT - Dungeon
As we continue to hear Hugh's voice, we now see a montage of shots that match what Hugh is describing, the actors now their hero avatars performing the deeds that Hugh describes and introducing us to the PCs. During one particularly crazy moment of action, the image freezes and we hear

Chris (VO)
What was I thinking?

Sophia (VO)
That was insane!

Justice (VO)
If you had botched that roll we'd all be dead.

Michelle (VO)
Not me, I've always got an escape plan.