Though it's been a long time in development, Warner Bros.' Dungeons & Dragons movie seems to finally be making some progress. With the court case over the film's rights out of the way as of last year, the studio is hoping to get the project underway soon.
One sign that things might finally be moving forward is that the studio is in the early stages of casting. Ansel Elgort, best known for his roles in the Divergent series and The Fault in Our Stars, is reportedly in talks to star in the film.
Deadline reports that Elgort is in early negotiations to take the lead role in the Rob Letterman-directed film, calling it a "primo role for any actor." The film will supposedly center around a warrior and his "band of mystical creatures" as they embark on a journey to find a fabled treasure. It's assumed that the warrior role is the one that Elgort is in negotiations for, but it's not clear whether the "mystical creatures" are actual creatures that travel with him or if they are companions from mythical races such as elves, dwarves and the like. Given the party-oriented nature of D&D, the safe bet would be the latter.
Past Dungeons & Dragons-related films have struggled with separating the Dungeons & Dragons brand from generic fantasy outings, though some fans are hopeful for Warner Bros.' take on the property. It's based on a script by David Leslie Johnson (The Conjuring 2), which was reportedly first written using the title of Chainmail. Long-time D&D fans will recognize this as the name of the tabletop game that Gary Gygax created before Dungeons & Dragons, which offers at least some small comfort to fans because there's a good chance that the writers of previous Dungeons & Dragons movies weren't familiar enough with the property to know that sort of trivia.
With any luck, more casting news will start to break on the movie soon. Vin Diesel has expressed interest in the film, which isn't a surprise given how big of a fan he is of the game, so fans will likely be keeping an eye out for any news of his involvement. Beyond that it's a waiting game, though given that Warner Bros. wants Dungeons & Dragons to be a franchise-launcher we should get more news sooner rather than later.
Some might point to the domestic box office struggles of Warcraft as a reason to question Dungeons & Dragons' own commercial viability, but that film's international take is probably enough to quell the studio's concerns. If Dungeons & Dragons finds the right stars and has a strong script to work from, it could make a solid impression at the box office.
Next: Dungeons & Dragons Producer Talks Tone and Shared Universe Potential
Dungeons & Dragons is in early development, and does not currently have a release date. Screen Rant will keep you updated as more information becomes available.
Source: Deadline