D&D Movie/TV Netflix Planning Forgotten Realms D&D TV Show With Stranger Things Producer

A Dungeons & Dragons TV show set in the Forgotten Realms is in development at Netflix. Deadline reports that the new TV series, titled The Forgotten Realms, is being produced by Shawn Levy, with Drew Crevello serving as writer and showrunner. No timeframe was given for the show's release. No cast has been announced and neither Hasbro nor Netflix has actually confirmed the project. If successful, the series could launch a wider D&D cinematic universe, long a goal for Hasbro.

Hasbro has tried unsuccessfully to get Dungeons & Dragons to television for several years. At one point, Paramount+ had a TV show in development with Rawson Marshall Thurber writing the pilot. While the project was ultimately scrapped, Crevello (who was set to be showrunner on that version of the show) stayed on the project and redeveloped it with a new concept. According to Deadline, this project is not tied to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, although the movie is set to debut on Netflix this month and is also set in the Forgotten Realms.

Dungeons & Dragons was also featured in an episode of Secret Level, an animated series focused on various game franchises that aired on Amazon Prime. Legendary, meanwhile, is adapting Hasbro's other major fantasy franchise Magic: The Gathering into a movie and TV project.

 

[Chaltab]

Not surprised. Sandman was terrible. Acting and writing were so poor.

...Uh okay. Sure, that was the problem, and not Neil Gaiman's history of abuse.

 

[Queer Venger]

They tried PG-13 with DADHAT, BG3s maturity went much better for them.

Also look at the success of Vex Machina cartoon, which akin to an R-Rating, BG3 would probably closer to NC-17.

yep, mature contents doesn't have to be exclusive to fantasy genre. A D&D tv show can appeal to a wide audience but marketing I could see them wanting it to be kid friendly.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

yep, mature contents doesn't have to be exclusive to fantasy genre. A D&D tv show can appeal to a wide audience but marketing I could see them wanting it to be kid friendly.

It's Time to follow the money. The biggest successes in D&D are not kids stuff, it's the nature stuff. BG3 & CR shows. They keep trying the PG-13 stuff.

 

[Parmandur]

It's Time to follow the money. The biggest successes in D&D are not kids stuff, it's the nature stuff. BG3 & CR shows. They keep trying the PG-13 stuff.

The biggest successes in media are PG-13. Why should they pursue less success over more success...?

 

[TiQuinn]

It's Time to follow the money. The biggest successes in D&D are not kids stuff, it's the nature stuff. BG3 & CR shows. They keep trying the PG-13 stuff.

Except, you know, D&D the game itself.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

The biggest successes in media are PG-13. Why should they pursue less success over more success...?

Deadpool is a huge success without being PG-13. In fact that PG-13 Deadpool movie was the only failure.

Some IP simply does better as PG-13, other IP does not. Would adapting Game of Thrones have been more successfully if it had been PG-13? No.

Not every IP can chase the Disney Princess dollars, sometimes it more profitable to go after other demographics, like young & older adults with more disposable incomes.

The idea every IP should be chasing the family market is a failed approach, some IP just does better being targeted at adults.

Would Vox Machina do better if it was more family friendly, with the adult content scoured away? No.

I'm not saying there is no settings in 5e that don't suit family friendly content, Eberron, Dragon Lance, Birthright, Spelljammer, all make are good PG-13 settings, Planescape, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Exandria, Greyhawk are better off focused primary on mature audiences. Doesn't mean every product for those settings has to have matured content, but the big ticket items in the future should be.

I mean TSR spent years trying and failing to force FR into being a family friendly setting, and failing (although it did succeed at making FR the most hopeful classic setting in someways), I mean the writers came up with their own lingo for brothels to get around TSRs attempts at making FR PG-13.

It's built into the very foundations of the setting at this point.

 

[TiQuinn]

I'm not saying there is no settings in 5e that don't suit family friendly content, Eberron, Dragon Lance, Birthright, Spelljammer, all make are good PG-13 settings, Planescape, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Exandria, Greyhawk are better off focused primary on mature audiences. Doesn't mean every product for those settings has to have matured content, but the big ticket items in the future should be.

What about the supposedly mature settings make them so? I can see Ravenloft being PG-13 horror as much as R horror, especially given so much of it is inspired by Universal and Hammer film monsters.

Greyhawk? Is Tomb of Horrors particularly R-rated? White Plume Mountain? Most of its elements are fairly kid-friendly. Lord of the Rings is probably its closest analog with Iuz filling in the Sauron role - obviously that series was PG-13.

Forgotten Realms? The sole standout here is BG3 but that really seems to be the only example and only because people like the romance elements.

 

[Parmandur]

Deadpool is a huge success without being PG-13. In fact that PG-13 Deadpool movie was the only failure.

Some IP simply does better as PG-13, other IP does not. Would adapting Game of Thrones have been more successfully if it had been PG-13? No.

Not every IP can chase the Disney Princess dollars, sometimes it more profitable to go after other demographics, like young & older adults with more disposable incomes.

The idea every IP should be chasing the family market is a failed approach, some IP just does better being targeted at adults.

Would Vox Machina do better if it was more family friendly, with the adult content scoured away? No.

I'm not saying there is no settings in 5e that don't suit family friendly content, Eberron, Dragon Lance, Birthright, Spelljammer, all make are good PG-13 settings, Planescape, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Exandria, Greyhawk are better off focused primary on mature audiences. Doesn't mean every product for those settings has to have matured content, but the big ticket items in the future should be.

I mean TSR spent years trying and failing to force FR into being a family friendly setting, and failing (although it did succeed at making FR the most hopeful classic setting in someways), I mean the writers came up with their own lingo for brothels to get around TSRs attempts at making FR PG-13.

It's built into the very foundations of the setting at this point.

Deadpool is the most successful R rated film of all time (though with inflation, about the same as Pasion of the Christ). It is not in the top 20 films of all time, however, before considering inflation. And moat R rated films get nowhere near the top. PG-13 makes more money, simple as.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

Deadpool is the most successful R rated film of all time (though with inflation, about the same as Pasion of the Christ). It is not in the top 20 films of all time, however, before considering inflation. And moat R rated films get nowhere near the top. PG-13 makes more money, simple as.

A D&D TV show is never going to hit the top 20 no matter what you rate it.

And again it depends on the IP, some make more money as PG-13, some make more money R-Rated, it depends on the market for the IP.

There is alot more competition fir the PG-13 market.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

What about the supposedly mature settings make them so? I can see Ravenloft being PG-13 horror as much as R horror, especially given so much of it is inspired by Universal and Hammer film monsters.

Greyhawk? Is Tomb of Horrors particularly R-rated? White Plume Mountain? Most of its elements are fairly kid-friendly. Lord of the Rings is probably its closest analog with Iuz filling in the Sauron role - obviously that series was PG-13.

Forgotten Realms? The sole standout here is BG3 but that really seems to be the only example and only because people like the romance elements.

If you read more FR novels you realize that BG3 is FAR from an exception. Incest, Rape, Genocide, Abortion, Infantcide, Genital Mutilation, Sex, Drugs, Naked Goddess, Elminister getting more action then Leonardo Dicaprio, torture, horror, brothels, coin lasses & lads, mind control sex, etc...

Greyhawk I'm less of an expert on, but they want to go gritty.

PG-13 horror either sucks or is really just Gothic/Dark fantasy, it makes as much sense as PG-13 porn, so yes Ravenloft should be fore more mature audiences.

Planescape has alot of really dark planes fill with torture. Arborea has a very sexy times feel to me.