D&D Movie/TV Drizzt original role filled by Xenk the Paladin.
- Thread starter darjr
- Start date
Parmandur
Book-Friend
That...actually makes a lot of sense.
Ondath
Hero
That actually explains so much. As it was, Xenk felt a bit overpowered and really felt like a bad DMPC - albeit a very enjoyable one!
I'm sure someone thought that it would be cool to see Drizzit for fan service. They could have walked over to the same actor (though massive visual problems here) but he is in elven chain mail, a dark cloak, has two scimitars, and has a huge purple CGI spam panther next to him. And he would be like "Greetings my friends, prepare yourselves to go to my former homeland....the Underdark!"
But...well....it's reducing a massively popular legendary character to a guest star.
And they don't want to get 'stuck' with that actor as Drizzit and want to avoid changing the actor for every movie.
But...well....it's reducing a massively popular legendary character to a guest star.
And they don't want to get 'stuck' with that actor as Drizzit and want to avoid changing the actor for every movie.
Whizbang Dustyboots
Gnometown Hero
Xenk was a great choice, especially since now they have the paladin archetype to subvert with all the more modern takes on paladins.
If you look at the official stats, xenk is much high cr than the other characters, so yea he was intentionally stronger, probably one of the reasons he wasn’t a main character, and that’s a choice I very much agree with
MoonSong
Rules-lawyering drama queen but not a munchkin
Where can you find the stats? I want to see if I was right.
Ondath
Hero
Oh yeah, lore-wise it absolutely makes sense, and the actor played the Lawful Good Paladin trope perfectly (and even showed how you can be a goody-two-shoes in a heist movie while sticking to your principles and having heart!). That said, what makes for a good movie doesn't make for a good table experience, and I'd be furious if the DM dragged us to a quest in Underdark where the only thing we did was watch this incredibly cool character fight Red Wizards single-handedly. That's what I meant with him fulfilling the role of the DMPC. But in a movie, it was quite fun and I hope to see Xenk in future movies.
They released the stat blocks for all the characters in this D&D Beyond-exclusive bundle. Note that it's not fully faithful to the film, with things like Edgin casting spells.
Davies
Legend
Neat. This is much better, though. Right up until his last appearance, I was uncertain whether Xenk was going to turn out to be a bad guy posing as a good one -- the hints that what he went through on the night that the Red Death was unleashed "changed him" increased my suspicions -- where if Drizzt showed up, there would be none of that ambiguity.
Aellic Mornbringer
Explorer
I shared your uncertainty about Xenk though considering Hugh Grant's Forge was already filling the "wolf-in-sheep's clothing" role, I didn't think they were going to drink from that same well twice in the same film. But yeah, Xenk's intensity definitely made me think "I wonder...." a few times.
Whizbang Dustyboots
Gnometown Hero
Claim Honor Among Thieves Bundle now! - D&D Beyond
www.dndbeyond.com
Note that they're just NPC-style stats.
Paul Farquhar
Legend
Doesn't surprise me, I was reminded of the Drizzt cameo in Baldur's Gate, where he kills dozens of gnolls, when I saw the movie. You could replace Xenk with Drizzt without affecting the story at all.
But it was the right decision, Drizzt is decidedly unfunny, has no name recognition outside hardcore D&D fandom, and inside the fandom is hated by as many people as he is loved.
But it was the right decision, Drizzt is decidedly unfunny, has no name recognition outside hardcore D&D fandom, and inside the fandom is hated by as many people as he is loved.
Paul Farquhar
Legend
I would say he was more of a cuddly wolf in wolfs clothing. He never really makes any pretence of being heroic or morally upright.
Sorcerers Apprentice
Hero
At least in Baldur's Gate you can pickpocket his scimitars if you find him annoying.
