Joe Manganiello is Developing a DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Film
Last year Warner Bros. announced that they would start developing a feature film adaptation of Dungeons & Dragons. There were no details revealed at the time of who was involved with the development of the project, but Joe Manganiello (True Blood) recently revealed that he's co-writing a script with a friend.
For those of you who don't know, Manganiello is a huge Dungeons & Dragons fan. We actually recently shared a video of him playing the strategy game on the Dungeons & Dragons series CelebriD&D.
I have no idea if the film Manganiello is working on is connected to Warner Bros. film, but it would make sense if it was. The actor has a relationship with the studio and is supposed to be playing Deadshot in The Batman.
On the most recent episode of the "Happy Sad Confused" (around the 53:00 mark), the actor reveals that to help in the process of writing the script, he held a creative summit with Wizards of the Coast, who is the creative force behind the Dungeons & Dragons property. He wanted to talk to them about "where [the film] could go, what it should look like, and what it should be."
After the World of Warcraft movie bombed at the box office, we learned that it's not an easy task to effectively adapt these epic fantasy properties that appeal to general audiences and hardcore fans. When talking about the key to getting something like this right the actor says:
"Obviously, there's a spectacle. There's dragons breathing fire and lightning. But what makes a great superhero or fantasy movie is the human aspect. It's got to be about something. We root for those characters in Game of Thrones. Fellowship of the Ring was about friendship, this undying love for your friends. That's something everyone can identify with.
"When a movie is about something human and real emotionally people are going to want to see. Then you get some dragons breathing fire, and hey, I'm in."
This whole thing is in the very early stages of development, but Manganiello says he's "talking to all the right parties" to make it happen, which means he's gotta be in talks with Warner Bros. since they currently own the movie rights to the property.
I hope it all works out! I'd love to see an epic Dungeons & Dragons movie get made with Joe Manganiello!