The original Dungeons & Dragons tabletop role-playing game borrowed considerably from J.R.R Tolkien and similar high fantasy authors. Figures such as elves, dwarves and halflings -- all closely resembling their embodiments in Tolkien's work -- were playable characters from the game's first incarnation and are staples to this day. For many players, the game wouldn't feel the same without them.
That leaves the new movie at something of a disadvantage. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves has to address Tolkien's influence in ways the game never did. It appears to respond by downplaying those links considerably, sticking to human and IP-specific characters. That's a smart play for a number of reasons.
The Dungeons & Dragons Game Leans Heavily Into Tolkien
Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings novels inspired Dungeons & Dragons when it first appeared in the 1970s. The game's unmapped catacombs and haunted forests routinely echo scenes from Middle-earth, such as the trek through The Mines of Moria in The Fellowship of the Ring or the journey through Mirkwood in The Hobbit. The game actively encourages players to emulate that pattern, complete with elves, dwarves and similar figures resembling the Tolkien model. Monsters such as orcs are also a big part of the game -- along with some of the more problematic implications that come with assigning traits like "good" and "evil" to entire species. And even as D&D has evolved, many of those core elements remain a part of it.
That's easy enough with a tabletop game based on individual players creating their own experiences. Most TTRPGs encourage players to draw inspiration from their favorite books and movies when gaming and licensed settings such as The Forgotten Realms put their own spin on such figures to give them some distinction. D&D novels, video games and other spinoff products similarly make regular use of Tolkienesque species without concern.
Honor Among Thieves Needs to Find Its Own Story
The problem, at least from Honor Among Thieves' standpoint, is that Tolkien has grown far beyond a literary audience. Peter Jackson's celebrated Lord of the Rings movie trilogy helped turn the author's work into a phenomenon, and today most people know all about his versions of notable fantasy species. Any attempt to emulate them directly suddenly feels like a knockoff, which is fine for a game around the table with friends but presents a challenge for an A-list movie trying to find its own audience. Competing with the Jackson films isn't advised, yet the more Tolkienesque material Honor Among Thieves includes, the more readily viewers will draw unfavorable comparisons.
In response, the film seems to be lowering the connections to an absolute minimum. The characters all appear human -- except for Doric the Druid, an IP-specific tiefling. The rest of the game's playable species remain a mystery, at least among the movie's principles. Similarly, the trailer emphasizes monsters unique to the game -- such as mimics and displacer beasts -- while leaving orcs and similar figures be. The one big exception is the movie's dragon, which the film plays more like an overweight house cat than a figure of menace like Smaug.
It's a tricky balance, and fans won't know if they pulled it off until the movie opens. But the overtly comedic tone in Honor Among Thieves' trailer suggests that it doesn't want to compete with the likes of Jackson's trilogy and instead seeks a more modest vibe. Downplaying the fantasy figures so closely associated with Tolkien seems to be part of that strategy and is absolutely necessary for the new film to succeed on its own terms. Fans of the game may need to accept their absence as part of the package.
To see if any Tolkien homages appear, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves opens Mar. 31.