Dragonlance Joe Manganelio is Writing the D&D Movie? And Is it DRAGONLANCE?

Actor Joe Manganelio (from True Blood, Magic Mike, and more) appeared on the Happy Sad Confused podcast this week, and reported that he is co-writing a movie script. While he doesn't namecheck D&D, his description sounds a lot like it, and he did recently meet up with WotC. "Last year with a playwright I went to Carnegie Mellon with, I actually made a draft of a film, and now we're talking to all the right parties. I had a two-day creative summit with the Wizards of the Coast...we had like a two-day summit about where the movie could go or TV series, products, synergy, the whole deal… Obviously, there's a spectacle. There's dragons breathing fire and lightning. But what makes a great superhero or fantasy movie is the human aspect. It's got to be about something. We root for those characters in Game of Thrones. Fellowship of the Ring was about friendship, this undying love for your friends. That's something everyone can identify with. When a movie is about something human and real emotionally people are going to want to see. Then you get some dragons breathing fire, and hey, I'm in." And to add fuel to the fire, he even tweets a photo of a DRAGONLANCE script! (thanks to darjr for the scoop)

The D&D movie is being directed by Rob Letterman (Goosebumps, Monsters vs. Aliens, Shark Tale), produced by Rob Lee (The Lego Movie, How To Train Your Dragon) and was/maybe still is being penned by David Leslie Johnson (Wrath of the Titans). Previous reports indicated that "This new Dungeons & Dragons will be a Guardians of the Galaxy-tone movie in a Tolkien-like universe. Because when you think of all the Hobbit movies and The Lord of the Rings, they have an earnestness to them, and to see something fun, a Raiders romp inside that world, I feel is something the audience has not seen before." and that "producers are eyeing a Vin Diesel-type for the film’s lead characters".

Of course, we also know that Vin Diesel plays D&D, as does Joe Manganiello.

So is he co-writing the D&D movie or is that something else? To add to the rumour pile, he tweeted an image of a DRAGONLANCE script (shown below). Of course, he could be playing with us. But maybe there is something in it? His name isn't that script, nor is David Leslie Johnson's. Let the speculation begin!

Manganelio at WotC in February

Manganelio tweeted this image



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[Ath-kethin]

Yeah, nah she'll be right, mate. I dont trust any other Director not to make a hash of it.

His fifteen or whatever hours of bloated, unnecessary additions to The Hobbit prove you oh so wrong.

 

[Oofta]

The MOST magical part of this rumor is: the possibility that Dragonlance may return as a major campaign setting? I can NOT imagine that they would set a movie in Krynn and then not release play material? i.e. a fully updated 5e campaign guide????

I am SO keeping my fingers crossed!

I've stolen so many ideas from the novels and the campaign source books over the years for my home campaign.

I may have to go back and reread the novels ... even with the oddities like darkvision giving you the ability to track people by the heat their footprints left behind they're still some of my favorite books. Probably because it felt more like a company of adventurer and not Drizz't and sidekicks.

 

[Shasarak]

His fifteen or whatever hours of bloated, unnecessary additions to The Hobbit prove you oh so wrong.

What would be your suggestion on how to make the Hobbit into a Trilogy without adding 15 hours to it?

 

[RedShirtNo5.1]

The D&D movie rights are...complicated.

So this Deadline article has the most information I've seen on the result of the settlement:
-WB gets to make a D&D movie in the forgotten realms.
-Sweetpea has a producer role.
-“This settlement accomplished our overarching goal of unifying all Dungeons & Dragons rights under Hasbro’s control, paving the way to make a blockbuster film, said Hasbro’s lawyers Maura Wogan and Jeremy Goldman of Frankfurt Kurnit on Monday."

I've got speculation on the actual disposition of rights, but as far as I know, that's basically our sum total knowledge of the status of the movie rights to "Dungeons & Dragons" post-settlement.

I agree that the separation of other IP such as Dragonlance does complicate the issue.

 

[Reynard]

What would be your suggestion on how to make the Hobbit into a Trilogy without adding 15 hours to it?

Not make it a trilogy?

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[RedShirtNo5.1]

Not make it a trilogy?

We can call it an unology!

 

[Lanliss]

Not make it a trilogy?

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From the little I remember, I think it would have worked well as a duo. The first movie could have ended just after Bilbo got the ring. There might have been a little bit of addition to the story, but not nearly as much has the three movies took.

 

[imdeadagain]

Am I on my own in thinking that the Drizzt stories are not that bad?


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[ccs]

What would be your suggestion on how to make the Hobbit into a Trilogy without adding 15 hours to it?

Well, the word don't comes to mind....
Afterall, it shouldn't take you longer to WATCH the hobbit than read it!

But if you insist on doing so anyways?
Then divide the book into equel 3rds & settle for making 3 considerably shorter movies.

Actually what I'd like to see is a special special edition of the Hobbit movies released. One where instead of adding even more stuff they go & edit out all the parts you don't find in the book.
I'd buy that disc.

 

[Oofta]

Am I on my own in thinking that the Drizzt stories are not that bad?


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Well, Drizzt is sort of an emo Mary Sue (Marty Stu?).

I've read several of the books, but to be honest he's my least favorite character, at least ever since the reboot and Regis became something other than comic relief.

Obviously though you have a lot of company, and he has a lot of fans. Almost as many as Legoland Legolas.