Paramount Pictures brought their epic fantasy film Dungeons & Dragons: honor among thieves at Comic-Con, and they made a big hit! During their panel, they premiered the film’s first trailer, which you can check out here if you haven’t seen it yet. This movie looks like a blast! Judging from what I’ve seen, I personally think the directors Jonathan Goldstein And John Francis Daley fully capture the spirit and magic of Dungeons & Dragons.
The directors present themselves to the panel along with the cast included Chris Pino, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean page, Judge Smith, Sofia Lilli, Cloe Coleman, Head of daisyAnd Ugo Grant. They opened up about the movie and shared some cool and interesting information, and I thought I’d share some of that stuff here for you!
First of all, on top of the trailer, they showed us two exclusive clips from the movie which were really funny! The first clip shows the D&D adventure team searching for a helmet with magical power and during their detective work, they went to the graveyard of an ancient battle, dug up corpses and brought them back to life to ask them five questions about what they were looking for. It was pretty hilarious to see how this scene unfolded. It was a lot of fun and we also got some great flashback sequences of the epic battle where the corpses fought and where they died.
The second clip began with the character of Hugh Grant, located in a large colosseum, where he presented three groups of people who must run through a giant maze while being hunted by deadly creatures. One of those creatures is a jaguar-looking beast with tentacles emerging from its body. As the adventures try to survive, they collect weapons from chests along the way. There are also some fun sequences of jelly cubes! The clip ends with the character of Pine being attacked by the jaguar beasts.
During the panel it was explained that the tone of the film will be light and fun, as a D&D movie should be! I’ve never played a D&D game that wasn’t full of humor, so it definitely makes sense to include it. Pine talked about the energy of the film saying it has a “Spielbergian quality”, with a light tone and kinetic energy:
“There’s a – I guess I’d call it a little bit – it’s like a Spielbergian energy. They’re the films I grew up with in the 1980s. It feels open, light and lively, and your job is to … like good improvisation, keep it alive – keep the energy and music of the scene alive, and I like that kind of directing, and create a nice energy on set, because you’re not trying to fix all the troubles in the world, the deep sadness or whatever. There is a certain pathos and a deep and great emotion to that, but I would say I guess the word I think of is a little lively, keeping it funny – lively, giving off energy that I think we all looked at. “.
The film will also channel the experience of what it’s like to play. Francis Daley said: “It’s not just a game, it’s a feeling you get when you play. And that’s what we’re doing with this film, that’s what we wanted to capture.” Personally I think that’s exactly what they’ve accomplished.
If you are a fan of D&D, there are many elements of the game and the franchise that you will recognize. It will be filled with tributes to the things we know and love about the game, including many recognizable monsters and characters. It is explained that they worked closely with the creators of the game to make sure they stick to tradition. Plus, if you’re a fan of the D&D ’80 cartoon, you’ll want to keep an eye out for those live-action characters too – in fact, one of the adventurer groups in the maze action scene will look very familiar.
They also talked about the special effects created for the film and revealed that they were developed by Industrial Light and Magic and Legacy, notably pointing out that these are the people who brought us Baby Yoda. The film will also incorporate a mix of CGI and practical effects. They actually showed a behind-the-scenes video of the movie that showed some of the creatures’ hands-on effects, and it was pretty awesome! Goldstein said: “It is the possibility of bringing these characters to life that we have only imagined in our heads.”
As you might expect, the filmmakers and studio are hoping this film will turn into more films. They want this to turn into a huge franchise, and I definitely think there is a chance for that to happen. The filmmakers are bringing more villains, monsters, and characters from the D&D lore into the film with the hope of building those characters in future films. Speaking of the possibility, the filmmakers said, “If we’re lucky, [there will be] more movies “.
During the Q&A session, the filmmakers were asked if we could see Vecna, Mind Flayer, or the Critical Role crew in the film. But the directors haven’t confirmed or denied, they just don’t want to spoil any of the surprises the film holds, so there’s a chance one of those things could appear in the film. We just have to wait and see!
In the film, “A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers embark on an epic robbery to recover a lost relic, but things go dangerously wrong when they collide with the wrong people. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves brings the rich world and playful spirit of the legendary RPG to the big screen on a hilarious, action-packed adventure.
The film will be released in theaters in March 2023 and I can’t wait to see it. I’m super pumped for it!
by Joey Paur
Source: Geek Tyrant
