“You don’t even have to know what a dungeon or a dragon is!” : Meet the directors of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy event

THE Dungeon Masters Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Thieves! After cutting their teeth on several series, Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daly set their paws and style in Hollywood, signing several notable comedies (How to Kill His Boss, Happy Holidays, Game Night, Where He Was. Already a board game issue) and especially the version of Spider-Man By laying the groundwork for Tom Holland’s reboot with a script for Spider-Man Homecoming.

The success that today gives them the opportunity to develop another pop world, it Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Thieves, the first film to combine fantasy and humor and has been acclaimed by gamers, non-fans and the press alike. A challenge we were able to discuss with them during our visit to Paris. familiarity.

AlloCiné: The previous Dungeons & Dragons films were not very successful. They were even bad…

John Francis Dale: You said it! (laughs)

So the real challenge was to relaunch this world and this franchise and not settle for simply offering “more” fantasy films. How did you approach this?

Jonathan Goldstein: We were inspired by the game itself. And the game is unique because you create it while playing. It’s all about imagination, invention, spontaneity, going wrong, laughter… and above all, fun. Dungeons and DragonsAt first it’s a group of people playing together and we wanted that to be reflected in the film.

Knowing that it’s a very well-known world in the US and in the small world of roleplayers, but not so much in the general public and especially in France…

John Francis Dale: It’s important for people to know that you don’t have to be their fan Dungeons and Dragons. You don’t even need to know what a dungeon or a dragon is! (laughs)

Jonathan Goldstein: Just like you don’t need to know how to fly an F-18 to enjoy Top Gun, you don’t need to know the rules either.

John Francis Dale: All you need is to have fun at the cinema. And that’s what this whole movie is about: an experience that makes you feel transported into this new world with characters you can relate to. A world that feels new and different, but also exciting and dangerous.

How do we achieve this in writing?

Jonathan Goldstein: It was quite dangerous. As writers and directors, we had to convey a sense of the spontaneity of this world. However, of course, it is not spontaneous at all, because it has to be made into a film. Everything is very planned, but the main thing remains this spirit of unpredictability. For example: they go down to the bridge; This leads to a series of rules to avoid being trapped on the bridge; They cause a trap; So it was all for nothing and they have to solve a new problem. This happens often in the game.

John Francis Dale: And it also keeps the audience constantly on their toes, not knowing exactly where our characters will end up. It’s really fun to use a sense of unpredictability.

The film relies heavily on the chemistry between its characters and actors. How did you achieve this?

Jonathan Goldstein: This is thanks to our actors. They just met, but it looks like they’ve known each other for years. In a strange way, COVID helped because we were all in this bubble in Northern Ireland. We didn’t socialize with anyone outside of our cast and crew. So when they got on set, it was almost a relief to interact with other people. So that created something positive.

Speaking of the sets, we feel that they are real, that it is a tangible world without too much green screen, and that helps with immersion.

Jonathan Goldstein: Like the 80s movies that relied on practical effects, we wanted to capture that spirit. And I think that makes a difference for the audience, but also for the actors who are interacting with real things on set.

How did you go about integrating the world of D&D into the film? Did you have directives or were you completely free?

John Francis Dale: The game world is unique and specific because it is a different approach to fantasy than people are used to. So it was great to be able to build on that world and follow pretty much the same rules as when playing. The spells and creatures are so weird and strange in their own way that it gives you an experience you can’t. Usually happens when watching a fantasy movie. It really looks like something different.

In Dungeons and Dragons, there are “Dungeons” and there are “Dragons”. But while there are always dungeons in parts of the game, there aren’t always dragons. Was that an important element to include in the film?

Jonathan Goldstein: We didn’t want to disappoint you in this matter! We approached it the same way we approached the rest of the film: How do we do it in a way you’ve never seen before? So we have a dragon that is quite…unusual in its genre. We have another sour dragon that is unique Dungeons & Dragons.

John Francis Dale: We also have a stone dragon. Basically, every dragon is different from the dragons you’ve seen before. And this is really important for us. We want to feel different, but true Dungeons & Dragons.

At the end of the movie, we want to find this happy group for new adventures. Already considering a sequel?

John Francis Dale: We are quite superstitious. We know our characters and our stories have huge potential, but we’ve also taken the approach of focusing on a film that’s really close to our hearts. And if we’re lucky enough to get another one, we’ll jump at the chance because we’ve fallen in love with these characters and this world. Ask us again on April 12th! (laughs)

Would you say that the writer or director was the master of the Dungeons & Dragons game?

John Francis Dale: It’s exactly the same. You prepare the ground with the script and the sets, the characters are the actors, you throw it all together and hope that everything goes well and that you don’t go off the rails too much so it doesn’t end up being an absolute disaster! (laughs)