WotC ICv2 Has A Theory That WotC Will Be Sold

[Scott Christian]

Saying it will “inevitably” be anything is definitely hyperbolic, but I do agree with the underlying sentiment that a D&D movie would have an uphill battle selling itself as something other than just another fantasy movie.

An uphill battle versus what?
D&D has enormous amounts of lore. Just as much or more than any other fantasy novel set out there.
More of an uphill battle versus Conan? Not really.
Harry Potter? Not really.
Shanara? Wheel of Time? Witcher? I do not see any more of an uphill battle for D&D than any of these.
I mean, the superhero genre is chock full of convoluted lore that is more intertwined, tied in knots, and inconsistent than anything out there. Yet, they created series after series that many consider masterful.
No. Just pick some characters, pick a setting, and make the story great. Just don't skim on the surface. To me that would be the downfall.

 

[TheSword]

Can someone sum up in one sentence what a d&d movie is about, that doesn’t make me want to bury my players handbook in the ground and start lobbying for a ban on fan fiction in the interest of public decency.

 

[Oofta]

Can someone sum up in one sentence what a d&d movie is about, that doesn’t make me want to bury my players handbook in the ground and start lobbying for a ban on fan fiction in the interest of public decency.

Hmm, in my best cheesy announcer voice ...

In a world where monsters are real and people fear the coming darkness a small group of misfits band together in a last ditch effort to save their kingdom and perhaps find themselves along the way.​

​

Okay, now I'm tempted to grab my own shovel! I'll have to work on it.

 

[TheSword]

Hmm, in my best cheesy announcer voice ...

In a world where monsters are real and people fear the coming darkness a small group of misfits band together in a last ditch effort to save their kingdom and perhaps find themselves along the way.​

​

Okay, now I'm tempted to grab my own shovel! I'll have to work on it.

You just summed up a lot of 90’s monster movies if you replace kingdom with US.

 

[billd91]

An uphill battle versus what?
D&D has enormous amounts of lore. Just as much or more than any other fantasy novel set out there.

I might argue that D&D has enormous amounts of self-contradictory lore. What's true may depend on what decade or edition you're using as your foundation.

More of an uphill battle versus Conan? Not really.
Harry Potter? Not really.
Shanara? Wheel of Time? Witcher? I do not see any more of an uphill battle for D&D than any of these.

I do. They all have a certain amount of inherent character before the adaptation that are definable by the source material. Conan has a certain personality, so does Harry Potter. What's the inherent character of D&D? Is there a compelling personality that would make a good movie? Is there a central storyline?
And if there isn't, one has to be written whereas each of those you cite already have one - putting them ahead in the comparison (or farther up that hill of success). Same with the MCU. There's a lot of contradictory info there too - and a defining goal was to tease out a few threads from that Gordian knot that looked promising and could be woven together. But some of the material there was already pretty iconic and offered a good foundation.

 

[see]

So, let's take his "points" one-by-one:

1) Hasbro never really wanted to deal with Dungeons and Dragons or Magic: The Gathering.

If the only reason Hasbro wanted WotC was Pokemon, and Pokemon went away in 2003, why hasn't Hasbro dumped WotC well before now? Why would you wait almost two decades to get out of a business you don't want?

2) Hasbro knows board games.

So? It's not like those were ever naturally part of WotC. Remember that Hasbro bought AH before it bought WotC, as part of its "interactive" gaming strategy. Putting them under WotC in 2004 was a "Well, huh, we sold off the interactive division in 2001, they've been sitting around mostly ignored for a couple of years, where exactly do we shelve them?" move.

3) Cleaning up the company.

Existing licenses are not sales-blocking liabilities to buyers, they're known factors. On the other hand, active lawsuits are sales-blocking liabilities. Hasbro has not been "cleaning up the company" for sale by enmeshing it in lawsuits. Lawsuits are not a "hard-and-fast way" to end licenses, they're a way to have years of fighting.

4) Who Would Buy?

M:tG has had exactly one year without revenue growth in the last decade (2017), with 30% growth in 2019 and double-digit growth in 2020. D&D is in its greatest revenue and cultural-relevance position since the 1980s and possibly ever. There are any number of investors that would love to buy it . . . and the one that makes the most sense? That investor already owns it.

 

[Charlaquin]

An uphill battle versus what?
D&D has enormous amounts of lore. Just as much or more than any other fantasy novel set out there.
More of an uphill battle versus Conan? Not really.
Harry Potter? Not really.
Shanara? Wheel of Time? Witcher?

All of the above. The challenge isn’t to beat a specific IP, it’s to stand out among a saturated genre.

I do not see any more of an uphill battle for D&D than any of these.

It is the same uphill battle they all have to fight. To convince audiences that, among all the fantasy media out there, this is the one worth your time.

I mean, the superhero genre is chock full of convoluted lore that is more intertwined, tied in knots, and inconsistent than anything out there. Yet, they created series after series that many consider masterful.

I’m not making any comment about convoluted or contradictory lore. I’m talking about the challenges of marketing. LoTR stood out by being based on the works of the most influential and respected creator in the genre. Game of Thrones stood out by having lots of sex and nudity. Most other fantasy films and TV series don’t stand out to the same degree, and as a result they don’t make as much money or have as much pop cultural prestige. For a D&D movie to reach that level of success, it needs to figure out what about it sets it apart from the rest of the genre and commit to it.

No. Just pick some characters, pick a setting, and make the story great. Just don't skim on the surface. To me that would be the downfall.

Yeah, that is also important. But good characters, a good setting, and a good story aren’t enough to make a fantasy film more than a middling success.

 

[Mistwell]

3) Cleaning up the company.

Existing licenses are not sales-blocking liabilities to buyers, they're known factors. On the other hand, active lawsuits are sales-blocking liabilities. Hasbro has not been "cleaning up the company" for sale by enmeshing it in lawsuits. Lawsuits are not a "hard-and-fast way" to end licenses, they're a way to have years of fighting.

This is what I was thinking as well. STARTING two new litigation cases in a month period is a red flag for a buyer. Each case could last well longer than a one year period, and the licenses were naturally coming to an end (or at least the option to end) within that year is my understanding. Nothing about this says "wrapping up licenses" to me.

 

[Deset Gled]

Can someone sum up in one sentence what a d&d movie is about, that doesn’t make me want to bury my players handbook in the ground and start lobbying for a ban on fan fiction in the interest of public decency.

I'd also like to ask "Why is this community so obsessed with a D&D movie?" Seriously, it comes up way too often. Why is it a focus again in this thread?

You want to talk about expanding the D&D brand, talk about books. Talk about video games. Talk about tie-ins with kids TV shows. Talk about action figures, Happy Meal toys, and branded shampoo. Talk about t-shirts, Trapper Keepers, back packs, and under-roos. Talk about branded Renn Faire support, FLGS events, and sponsored podcasts. But move past this movie obsession. It's been done, it flopped, and the legal rights are stupidly complicated.

 

[Remathilis]

Can someone sum up in one sentence what a d&d movie is about, that doesn’t make me want to bury my players handbook in the ground and start lobbying for a ban on fan fiction in the interest of public decency.

A group of young heroes from across the realms band together to find a powerful artifact in order to stop an ancient menace from destroying the world.

Ya know, like 90% of most D&D campaigns are once you remove the bard-jokes and Monty Python references. Its cliche, but D&D is the trope codifier for most of western fantasy gaming, this isn't the place to go too far askew of the lore (See: any of the previous D&D movies).

I'd stick to simple, cliche, and what works. Make an iconic group of 4-5 heroes (I'd maybe avoid halflings, but D&D has nine playable races in the PHB alone). Have them hit some classic adventuring spots (goblin warrens, forgotten crypt, dragon's den) and face some iconic monsters (goblins, orcs, beholders, undead, dragons, some combination). Use a little IP magic for names and places (like FR deities or whatnot). Have them win the day and move onto the next adventure. Toss in a little intra-party romance for the poster art, and away you go.

Hell, if you wanted a decent D&D movie based solely on an established story, I'd skip Dragonlance or Drizzt and go with Baldur's Gate. Hits all the iconic elements and has a damn fine plot you could distill.