Netflix is working on a new live-action fantasy series, ‘The Forgotten Realms’, based on the father of the fantasy tabletop role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons.
Dungeons & Dragons: The Forgotten Realms is one of the most iconic and expansive settings in the D&D universe, created by Ed Greenwood, and released in the 1980s. It is a high-fantasy world filled with magic, mythical creatures, ancient ruins, and powerful deities, offering endless adventure possibilities. The setting is best known for its rich lore, detailed geography, and legendary characters such as Drizzt Do’Urden and Elminster. Faerûn, the most explored continent, is home to grand cities like Waterdeep and Baldur’s Gate, perilous dungeons, and vast wilderness teeming with monsters and secrets. The Forgotten Realms has served as the backdrop for countless novels, video games, and tabletop campaigns, making it one of the most beloved fantasy worlds in gaming history.
The series is being shepherded by one of Netflix’s big guns, Shawn Levy, director and EP of ‘Stranger Things’, writer/director/EP of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’, and director/EP of ‘The Adam Project’ and ‘Free Guy’. He is joined by Drew Crevello as writer-showrunner, who previously co-created ‘WeCrashed’ for Apple TV+, and helped get films such as ‘Deadpool’ and ‘X-Men: First Class’ produced whilst he was vice president of film production at Fox.
Most recently, we’ve seen D&D hit the big screen with the movie ‘Honor Among Thieves’ from Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, which really managed to nail the fun and adventure of the D&D universe. The fact that Netflix are leaning on people such as Levy and Crevello who have experience with properties such as ‘Deadpool’ and ‘Stranger Things’ I think shows they are looking for that same sort of fun and adventure vibe for the TV series too. It also doesn’t hurt that one of the biggest games of recent years, ‘Baldur’s Gate III’, was set in The Forgotten Realms, and had a similar atmosphere.
The series is being developed by Hasbro Entertainment for Netflix, with Crevello as writer-showrunner and Levy as exec producer.
‘Dungeons & Dragons: The Forgotten Realms’ is classed as “in development” but we’ll let you know if it moves forward at Netflix.
