The D&D Movie Finds Its Director

The Dungeons & Dragons movie has found its director - Rob Letterman (Goosebumps, Monsters vs. Aliens, Shark Tale). The Warner Bros. movie, scripted by David Leslie Johnson (Wrath of the Titans), is being produced by Rob Lee (The Lego Movie, How To Train Your Dragon) and others after the longstanding legal dispute involving Sweetpea Entertainment and Hasbro was resolved. The script is based on Johnson's script Chainmail, itself based on D&D's precursor and will be taking cues, stylistically, from Guardians of the Galaxy.

There's more information on the Guardians of the Galaxy inspiration here. We know it is set in the Forgotten Realms, is an ensemble piece, and is hopefully the first in a franchise spanning multiple worlds. "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."

This latest info comes from Tracking Board. The other tidbit in that article is that "sources say that producers are eyeing a Vin Diesel-type for the film’s lead characters". Additionally, WotC staff has indicated occasionally that they have some involvement in the movie.

 

[Caliburn101]

Doesn't FIT? Fit what? D&D???
I've got some bad news for you. Our favorite game has been a brew of continuous B-movie/serial/pulp action level over the top stuff, plots, quips, one-liners, inappropriate comments, etc for a looong time. Probably since about 5 minutes after its inception....

The trick is translating this onto the screen.

The trick, actually, is making the film successful - not confusing round the table out-of-character banter with what the characters were doing, or characterising the entire hobby with one's recollections of how casual games are played for a laugh.

People who don't game will not 'get it', and there are not enough gamers who will appreciate that kind of approach to make 10% of their money back if they make it with decent effects.

All the D&D movies so far have fallen into that trap to one extent or another, and they have all bombed.

Game of Thrones however is a worldwide success. Mythica, for an indie movies series that is very 'D&D' is also a great success considering the very small budget. Neither of these two live action expressions of D&D indulge in adolescent one-liners, B-movie antics or modern cross-culture quips. They treat the characters and a worlds they are set in as serious, 'could credibly exist' concerns.

This is the secret of their success - they have enough 'real world' touchstone material to resonate with wider audiences.

As far as the rest is concerned - having been a gamer since the first roleplay material became available, I don't need to use the word 'probably' to know what it was like then, at any time in between or indeed, now.

So the only 'bad news' I can see is that there may be more than one person who thinks a casual 'popcorn and bubblegum' approach to the movies will do it's chances any good at all.

It hasn't before, and it won't do now.