Dungeons & Dragons was always a difficult property to bring to the big screen. The open-ended nature of the franchise means audience members can have very different views on the material, and the fantasy genre has plenty of entries that make the magical elements less singular in the cinematic landscape. But there's one element of the Dungeons & Dragons experience that's crucial to recreating if an adaptation is going to work -- and it has nothing to do with magic.
The newest trailer for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves suggests the film will lean into party dynamics and character interplay alongside its promised action and adventure. That is the best route any adaptation of the property could attempt, as the focus on character above spectacle could help the new film avoid the pitfalls that befell the first attempt to bring the franchise to film.
How Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Is Learning From the Past
The promotional material for Honor Among Thieves suggests the film will embrace a somewhat looser approach to the material than the last attempt to bring the role-playing game to the big screen. Characters like Edgin the Bard (Chris Pine) are quick with a joke to offset the frequent dangers he and the rest of his group seem to encounter in the film. Even as they set off on a quest to stop the Red Wizard of Thay (Daisy Head), the film seems to keep that light-hearted energy throughout. It provides the characters with a nice lived-in and charismatic quality that was definitely missing from the prior attempt to adapt the RPG for the big screen.
2000's Dungeons & Dragons -- starring Justin Whalin as the rogue Ridley Freeborn, Marlon Wayans as his best friend Snails, Zoe McLellan as the young mage Marina and Jeremy Irons as the villainous Profion -- was a largely uninspired fantasy film that lacked any charisma or sense of fun. As a result, the film only had the standard "epic adventure" to fall back on and effects that quickly felt out of date and cheap compared to other films of its type. The lack of any true fun dynamics between the characters seriously hurt the film's story, leaving the cast with stale characters to play that inspired little attention or adoration from viewers. It was ultimately a critically-maligned box office bomb and became useful as a case study of what not to do while adapting the franchise.
Honor Among Thieves Highlights the Importance of Character to Dungeons & Dragons
One of the elements of Honor Among Thieves that's been highly referenced in the advertising is the snarky interplay between Pine's Edgin and the rest of his allies. The most recent trailer especially highlights this, showcasing sequences pairing Edgin trading snark with the tiefling Druid Doric (Sophia Lillis) or running afoul of the stoic Paladin Xenk (Regé-Jean Page). Character dynamic gets teased throughout, which adds something to the overall adventure. If the characters are likable on their journey, audiences are far more likely to care if they succeed or fail. The conventions of the fantasy genre suggest they'll ultimately prove themselves heroes in the plot. But by highlighting the dynamic between the party itself and making that a central feature of the film's focus, Honor Among Thieves adds a relatable and entertaining element.
In games like Dungeons & Dragons, a major element of the appeal comes from the group dynamics that develop in any party. A good party of adventuring characters can inspire all sorts of storytelling potential and fan adoration, as evidenced by the fandom that's erupted around groups like Critical Role. Honor Among Thieves is taking a good step in the right direction and learning from the lackluster characters of 2000's Dungeons & Dragons, focusing on the characters instead of the fantasy. There are countless fantasy epics that feature swords and sorcery, especially when one applies the flexible and purposefully open world of the Dungeons & Dragons franchise. The 2000 film's biggest mistake was thinking that would be enough to draw in audiences. But the way to make a fantasy epic like that work is to focus on the characters just as much as the adventure. A good party of characters will likely always be the deciding factor whether an adaptation of a franchise like Dungeons & Dragons works. But the sense of fun interplay between Honor Among Thieves' characters is a good sign that the new film has learned from the mistakes of the old one.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves hits theaters Mar. 31.