How ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ Directors Used ‘Star Wars’ as Model for New Film Fanbase: ‘You Don’t Need to Know Anything About Politics’

Michael Appler Al Pacino passed on taking a trip to a galaxy far far away. During a talk Wednesday at The 92nd Street Y, New York, the Oscar winner recalled being offered the role of Han Solo in “Star Wars.” “Well, I turned down ‘Star Wars.’ When I first came up, I was the new kid on the block, you know what happens when you first become famous. It’s like, ‘Give it to Al.’ They’d give me Queen Elizabeth to play,” Pacino said. “They gave me a script called ‘Star Wars.’ … They offered me so much money. I don’t understand it. I read it. … So I said I couldn’t do it. I gave Harrison Ford a career.”

EXCLUSIVE: Emjay Anthony (Physical), Chiara Aurelia (Cruel Summer), Kezii Curtis (Charm City Kings) and Nikki Hahn (Magnum P.I.) have joined the cast of Peacock’s coming-of-age thriller Hysteria! as series regulars.

BreAnna Bell Julie Bowen has signed on to star in Peacock’s forthcoming series “Hysteria!” According to the streamer, the series is a coming-of-age thriller that explores American’s dark history of mass hysteria through the shocking story of the teenage Satanic Panic, a struggling high school heavy metal band of outcasts in the ’80s. As a group, they realize they can capitalize on the town’s sudden interest in the occult by building a reputation as a Satanic metal band, until a bizarre series of murders, kidnappings, and reported “supernatural activity” triggers a leather-studded witch hunt that leads directly back to them. Bowen will play Linda Campbell, the mother of one of the teenage outcasts. Linda experiences a series of supernatural disturbances that force her to question everything she knows about her son, as well as the growing threat of Satanism in their small Midwestern town.

“Modern Family” star Julie Bowen is set to star in Peacock’s new thriller series “Hysteria,” the streamer announced Tuesday.Bowen will assume the role of Linda Campbell, the mother of a teenage outcast, in the drama series that exposes the underbelly of American’s mass hysteria prompted by teenage Satanic Panic in the 1980s by following a group of misfits who exploit the widespread concern.As Linda witnesses supernatural disturbances that force interrogations onto her son, she questions the growing threat of Satanism that menaces small Midwestern town. The official logline is as follows: “When a beloved varsity quarterback disappears during the “Satanic Panic” of the late 1980s, a struggling high school heavy metal band of outcasts realize they can capitalize on the town’s sudden interest in the occult by building a reputation as a Satanic metal band, until a bizarre series of murders, kidnappings, and reported “supernatural activity” triggers a leather-studded witch hunt that leads directly back to them.”Hailing from UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, Matthew Scott Kane serves as writer and executive producer for the drama series. John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein will executive produce alongside Chris Bender and Jake Weiner, who executive produce for Good Fear Content.

Maisie Smith has reportedly landed first major film role, as she's said to have been cast in key role in the upcoming gangster film Bermondsey Tales: Fall Of The Roman Empire, alongside a handful of famous faces.The former EastEnders actress, 21, has been acting since a young age and first appeared in the long-running BBC soap as Tiffany Butcher back in 2008, when she was just six years old. Maisie went on to appear in 678 episodes of the popular soap. Prior to joining to cast of EastEnders, she made her film debut as a very young Elizabeth I in 2008’s The Other Boleyn Girl.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Chris Pratt’s Mario voice has been a topic of discussion ever since the first trailer for “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” debuted last October. Some fans claimed it wasn’t Italian enough, while others felt it was too aggressively Brooklyn. In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Pratt revealed that one of his first attempts at the Mario voice got rejected by the film’s directors, Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, because it far too resembled Tony Soprano, the anti-hero mob boss played by James Gandolfini in HBO’s “The Sopranos.” “For a minute, I walked in and they were like, ‘That’s a little New Jersey. You’re doing a Tony Soprano thing,’” Pratt said. “[The voice] was a really exciting and daunting challenge. Talking to these guys, they say, ‘You wanna do the Mario movie?’ I think both [Charlie Day and I] said yes. Didn’t even ask, ‘What’s the deal? What’s the story?’ ‘Yes, I’m in.’ And then we had to really dig in and figure out…are they Italian? Are they American?”

return to play Rey in a new, untitled movie. Although the flick will be about Rey, the badass orphan heroine of Episodes VII through IX, it likely won’t be a continuation of the studio’s tentpole Luke Skywalker-Darth Vader series.Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy told Vanity Fair in 2022, “We are moving on from the Skywalker saga. That’s what’s taking a lot of time, discussion, and thought right now.”Director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy says the movie, set 15 years after 2019’s “Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker,” will “tell the story of the rebuilding of a new Jedi order.”“My heart is pounding,” Ridley said on stage in London.

reprising her role as Rey in an upcoming “Star Wars” film, another feature in the works will be far less connected to the “Star Wars” characters and eras audiences with which audiences are most familiar. It was announced on Friday that “Logan” and “Ford v.

Star Wars have today (April 7) confirmed that three new films are in the works for the franchise, while also revealing the film’s directors.The announcement was made at this year’s Star Wars Celebration in London by LucasFilm president Kathleen Kennedy.The first film in the franchise will be directed by James Mangold, who has directed this year’s upcoming Indiana Jones film, Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny. This film will explore “the first Jedi to wield the force”, according to Kennedy (via Empire).The second will be directed by The Mandalorian co-creator Dave Filoni.

While Lucasfilm was able to give some updates about a range of previously announced “Star Wars” projects at Star Wars Celebration this weekend in London, they’ve now added some new things into the mix as well. READ MORE: Shawn Levy To Direct A ‘Star Wars’ Film After His Work On ‘Deadpool 3’ & ‘Stranger Things’ One of the big feature film announcements made this morning included Dave Filoni being set to make his film debut with a new project set in the Mandoverse.

Rege-Jean Page might portray a knight in shining armor, aka a Paladin, in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, but it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.

conjured up $38.5 million at the box office this weekend — a respectable figure given the movie was based on a tabletop role-playing game from the ’70s. And whether you’re an old-school D&D player (like this writer) or a newer fan (thanks to “Stranger Things”), “Honor Among Thieves” includes plenty of fan service.In the tabletop game (and licensed video game adaptions), players take on different classes or jobs, the archetypes being fighter, cleric, thief and wizard.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” an adaptation of the popular role-playing game, ignited at the international box office with $33 million from 60 markets. Paramount and eOne’s film also opened in North America with $38.5 million, bringing its global tally to $71 million. It’s a good start, especially considering Hollywood’s track record in adapting games for the big screen. But “Dungeons and Dragons” needs to keep playing in theaters to justify its $150 million price tag before marketing. Overseas audiences will be key to the success of “D&D.” The film, directed Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley and starring Chris Pine and Regé-Jean Page, enjoyed the biggest start in China with $5 million, followed by the U.K. with $4.3 million, Mexico with $2.4 million, Australia with $2.4 million, and Germany with $2 million.

Saturday AM: Though Friday was $15.3M, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is still looking at a $40M opening.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” currently playing in theaters. “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” rolls into theaters this weekend with Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Justice Smith and Sophia Lillis starring in the big-screen adaptation of the role-playing game. With obstacles to overcome, challenges to navigate, and monstrous forces to tackle, the gang embarks on a fantasy-filled adventure with twists, turns, surprises and plenty of easter eggs. Writers and directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley (“Game Night”) make sure to sprinkle in plenty of treats for longtime fans, with some in plain sight and others in the background.

In the latest episode of Crew Call, we talk to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves directors, scribes and EPs John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein about the vision they sold to Paramount to make the dark and dingy world of the role playing game, not just fun, but funnier. And even more so, a broad film that appealed to the die-hards and non-die hards alike. That take seems to be working after a rapturous SXSW world premiere and critical and audience scores well over 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses an unannounced cameo in the film “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” which is currently playing in theaters. For “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” writer-directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley pulled from the expansive trove of creatures and lore created over the 50-year history of the Dungeons & Dragons role playing game. There are paladins and sorcerers, red wizards and owlbears, bards and barbarians — all of them written by Goldstein and Daley and performed by Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Hugh Grant, Justice Smith, Sophia Lillis and Daisy Head with the same good-natured pluck that has imbued the countless campaigns waged by the game’s players.

Jordan Moreau Paramount and eOne are launching their new fantasy film “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” this weekend, and the adaptation of the popular role-playing game picked up $5.6 million in previews at the domestic box office. It opens in 3,855 theaters on Friday. After rolling for initiative, it will prepare for combat against “John Wick: Chapter 4,” last weekend’s box office champion — and it’ll be a close battle. Directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, “Dungeons and Dragons” is hoping to conjure up $30 million to $40 million in its opening weekend, and Keanu Reeves’ “John Wick 4” is muscling its way to around $36 million in its sophomore outing.

Paramount and eOne’s Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves has made $5.6M in previews. That’s not all from Thursday, but includes advance Amazon sneaks among other pre-screenings. Before Thursday, we’re told Dungeons & Dragons made $1.5M. While the feature take of the popular role-playing game has been hot in word of mouth (92% on Rotten Tomatoes) and with critics (89% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), tracking has sat on the movie with a $30M-$40M domestic opening projection for the $150M production.

Paramount and Hasbro eOne with the greatest of intentions have created an extremely fun, broad-audience appealing feature take on the classic roleplaying game, entitled Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, which already is 90% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes –not an easy feat with a genre movie of this caliber– and 94% with moviegoers.