Dungeons & Dragons Live-Action TV Show Is Happening with John Wick Creator
In addition to an upcoming live-action movie in the works at Hasbro, plans are moving forward for a new Dungeons and Dragons TV show based on the popular fantasy role-playing game. It’s now being reported that John Wick franchise creator and writer Derek Kolstad has been hired to write and develop a pitch for a live-action Dungeons & Dragons series. Story details are yet to be revealed, but if the series is meant to be heavy on action, Kolstad is an excellent choice for the job.
Hasbro is developing these properties through its entertainment studio, eOne. Kolstad’s series and the movie with Pine are just two small pieces of eOne’s overall plans to create a Dungeons & Dragons universe with multiple projects. The company is said to be working with multiple other writers to develop various stories set in the fantasy universe, though it’s not yet clear if or how exactly their respective storylines will be connected.
Kolstad is best known for writing John Wick. Conceived by Kolstad, the movie follows Keanu Reeves as a retired contract killer seeking deadly vengeance against the men who killed his puppy. Kolstad also worked as a writer for both John Wick sequels. He also wrote the script for Nobody, an upcoming action thriller starring Bob Odenkirk. Lately, Kolstad has been working as a writer on Marvel’s upcoming Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and is writing the script for a movie based on the Just Cause video game series.
Last month, it was reported that Chris Pine was in talks to star in a Dungeons & Dragons movie. Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley are attached to direct and write the screenplay, which is based on a story by Michael Gilio. The project is a collaboration between eOne and Paramount. Jeremy Latcham will produce for eOne with Brian Goldner producing for Hasbro. A release date has been set for May 27, 2022.
Previous adaptations of Dungeons & Dragons have been made as well. In the 1980s, an animated series based on the fantasy universe aired for three seasons, and the series has maintained a cult following in the years since. It followed a group of young friends from the real world transported to a dark realm by way of a ride on a magical roller coaster. They then spend the rest of the series fighting mythical monsters while trying to find their way back home.
In 2000, a Dungeons & Dragons movie was released by New Line Cinema. Directed by Courtney Solomon and written by Carroll Cartwright and Topper Lilien, the movie starred Justin Whalin, Marlon Wayans, Thora Birch, Jeremy Irons, and Zoe McLellan. The story follows an empress and two thieves seeking a mythical rod that will help them fight an evil warlock. Unfortunately, the reviews were mostly negative and the movie was a box office dud, keeping the D&D franchise off the big screen for more than 20 years now.
It’s not yet clear when Kolstad’s Dungeons & Dragons series will begin filming or when it might be released. This news comes to us from The Hollywood Reporter.
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