Dungeons and Dragons: Honor AmongThieveshit the big screen back in March and has since made its way to Digital now too. While some fans may have enjoyed it in theaters, they and more can now enjoy it in the leisure of their own home, and in fact, they can perhaps a few guests over. After all, just like any tabletop game is about gathering with friends, so too is this movie.Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thievesis filled with feel-good momentsabout friendship and teamwork, but it is also filled to the brim with Easter eggs for fans to pause and find, which is easier done together.
It comes as no surprise that, despite there being several Easter eggs like spellcasting materials, Simon’s struggles as a sorcerer being tied to his low charisma, and more, some things just get missed during the spectacle of a theatrical release. The same is not necessarily true for a home release, with Game Rant recently speaking withDungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thievesdirectors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein about the differences between the two, the secrets hidden within the movie, and more.The following transcript has been edited for clarity and brevity.
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Q: As directors, how does it differ when going into a home release versus a theatrical release?
Daley: Ultimately, there’s something very exciting about that theatrical release and the spectacle of the big screen. But also, there’s something very timeless in watching at home, because that’s what kind of lives forever. It’s exciting for this whole new group of people who normally wouldn’t have wanted to catch it on the big screen to finally discover it in this way. It’s great because you just get a new kind of vocal group that has found it.
Goldstein: The other thing that’s good about the home video release is that we made the movie to contain many detailed little things,Easter eggs, and all kinds of things that fly by in the theatrical release, but now you have a chance to freeze-frame and really look at some of the stuff that’s in there, which is a tribute to our art department, because they put so much love and thought into every set.
Q: Yeah, I think it’s those small things like Simon being a sorcerer but having low Charisma playing off how that works in D&D. Is there anything like that, that maybe fans haven’t discovered yet?
Daley:Yeah, as you know, there’s like a verbal, somatic, and material component to spell-making. Depending on what spell it is, it incorporates any one of those things, and we tried to be very accurate as to what it takes to pull off any one of those spells. Any of the spells that you see in the film are “real,” they come from the lore. To be able to get that as precise as we did, sort of technically accurate, was really fun because it’s perfect for a rewatch and discovering, ‘oh, this is what goes into doing this."
Goldstein:We also had a woman whose job it was to choreograph the hand motions that themagic users use when casting spells, and some of it was inspired by American Sign Language. There’s a real connection between what you see them doing. We didn’t want to make the magic just be the standard issue “hand out, rays come out of the hand thing.” We’ve seen too much of that.
Q: Are there any major differences between the theatrical cut and the home release?
Goldstein:It’s entirely black and white now. We added two hours to it.
Oh no, we’re going back in time now.
Daley: I’m trying to think of if there is. We actually did a playdown of this with our Digital Intermediate person who manages the color and color timing of the film. I would say there might be a little difference in the colors and the light, and in dark scenes, you can see a little bit more into that darkness than you would necessarily on the big screen. Beyond that, I think it’s pretty much the same.
Q: What are your favorite D&D classes and did those impact the movie in any special way?
Goldstein: The Bard is a great one just because on its face, he’s not a warrior. It’s not someone you expect to bring much to an adventuring party, but in fact, they’re the glue that ties it all together. He’s the motivation, the coach of the bad news bears as I thinkChris Pineput it, so it’s just a really fascinating class. It’s one that speaks to me as a filmmaker and storyteller.
Daley: For me, it was theDruid and the ability to Wild Shape. It’s something that can be really cool to see cinematically, but also very difficult to pull off because it was important to us that we never get into uncanny valley territory. We didn’t want it where she is mid-transformation from human form to animal, which would look like a terrible Animorphs book cover. So, we were often cognizant of that and would hide that moment of transformation with something blocking the camera, she’s out of the frame, in other different ways, which was always fun. But we also definitely wanted to have a hero moment where we actually see her go from one animal to the next, which is easier to pull off when going from one CG asset to another.
Q: I think one common thing among D&D fans is that, even if you’re not like a rules lawyer, you can be very particular about the game still. How has it been knowing that this can be a fan base that’s hard to satisfy, yet to have garnered such positive reviews?
Goldstein: Yeah, it’s really satisfying because, of course, you feel theweight of the fans when you’re making the movie, and you want to verify you’re doing them right. And, especially in this era where there’s so much negativity put out on social media, to see so much love and people saying again and again, this feels like my game, this feels like my campaign, it was very gratifying.
Daley:Yeah, I mean, in nerd culture, there are a lot of gatekeepers, and there are a lot of people that immediately jump on things that they perceive as cynical or a blatant cash grab. What was refreshing was to see that they understood we went into this with the most honest intentions. You know, we really wanted to make a film that had heart, that was earnest and true, and even though it has humor, we’re never taking the piss out of anything. We’re never being cynical, and for them to understand that was really gratifying.
Q: Is there anything that you’d like to add or say about the movie to our readers?
Goldstein:Well, I would just say that I hope that the home video release gives people an opportunity who wouldn’t necessarily have gone out and dealt with parking, ticket prices, and all that to see it at home. I think one of the biggest reactions we’ve found is people saying it’s not what they expected it to be. Hopefully, people who are on the fence or not at all interested in thetitle ofDungeons and Dragonswill give the movie a chance.
Daley:Yeah, there’s a lot of rewatchability in this film. Four years of our time went into making it, so there are a lot of Easter eggs and hidden things you might not have seen the first time around. If you were on the fence about watching it and you liked seeing it at home, it’s still out in theaters today so you can do that as well, and maybe bring a group of friends to see it. It is definitely something that is meant to be seen with as many people as you can pull together.
Exactly.
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Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thievesis on Digital now and on 4K Ultra HD SteelBook, 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on May 30.
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