D&D Movie/TV Benedict Cumberbatch Joining D&D Movie?

According to The Sun, Benedict Cumberbatch is joining Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Rege-Jean Page, Hugh Grant and others in 2023's D&D movie.

He was in the The Hobbit trilogy as Smaug, the dragon, and is well known as Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock. More recently he narrated an animated short about a Drizzt.

D&D General - Benedict Cumberbatch Narrates A Drizzt Short [Updated]

On WotC’s YouTube channel, this animated short has just appeared. “Narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch and written by R.A. Salvatore, Sleep Sound reintroduces the origin story of the iconic Dungeons & Dragons hero, Drizzt Do’Urden.” UPDATE! A summer of Drizzt has been announced (Scroll down to...

www.enworld.org

D&D Movie/TV - Check Out Hugh Grant's D&D Movie Costume!

Posted by the Daily Mail, Hugh Grant was pictured at Somerset's Wells Cathedral in full costume. Hugh Grant plays the villain in the movie, which also stars Chris Pine, Regé-Jean Page, Michelle Rodriguez, and Justice Smith. See the link for more photos...

www.enworld.org

 

[grimslade]

Obviously, he is playing a Motion-captured Illithid captain on a Nautiloid. Speljammer confirmed!

 

[hopeless]

Until we can confirm where their movie is based (as in if its Neverwinter or somewhere else) we can only speculate.

IF this is Faerun there's only so many characters that might fit the bill.

Wizards, Khelben Arunson would be high on that list, if he's voicing a character that could be Xanathar itself and god knows how many others!
Manshoon of Zhentil Keep, one of the Hidden Lords of Waterdeep...

Dear lord I think others can add options to that list!

So I guess we wait and find out!

 

[LordEntrails]

Until we can confirm where their movie is based (as in if its Neverwinter or somewhere else) we can only speculate.

IF this is Faerun there's only so many characters that might fit the bill.

The banners flying from the castle from the movie set say Faerun. Neverwinter in particular.

 

[hopeless]

Thanks for the reminder.
However what is the likelihood that is Castle Neverdeath before Mount Hotenow erupted?

 

[bedir than]

IF this is Faerun there's only so many characters that might fit the bill.

They could use all new characters pretty simply. It's D&D. Making characters is part of the fun.

 

[Demetrios1453]

The plot for that movie also is a pretty standard D&D adventure, besides the whole "getting sucked into a video game" thing. Get a MacGuffin, keep it away from the villain, take down some nameless enemies in the meantime, and you've got a D&D adventure!

I mean, replace "video game" with "roller coaster", and you have the plot of the '80s D&D cartoon (barring the McGuffin part)...

 

[Paul Farquhar]

They could use all new characters pretty simply. It's D&D. Making characters is part of the fun.

This. They are making a D&D movie set in the Forgotten Realms, not a Forgotten Realms movie or a Neverwinter MMO movie. And creating characters is an important part of what makes D&D D&D.

If they include cameos, they are unlikely to be other people's heroes like Elminster or Drizzt for the same reason as you don't include them in tabletop adventures - the distract the spotlight from the player characters where it belongs.

Cameos from villains and neutrals like Xanathar or Jarlaxe are more likely, but on on the basis of them being interesting characters in their own right, not fanservice, hardcore D&D fans are not the target audience for this movie. But I think Cumberbatch would be miscast as Jarlaxe.

I think it's more likely Cumberbatch is an off screen narrator, which seems about the right degree of meta for this movie.

 

[Imaculata]

I hope they get the tone of this right. I hope it will turn out as a genuine fantasy movie with an orchestral soundtrack, and not a movie trying to be funny while throwing pop songs around every few minutes.