The Dungeons & Dragons movies got D&D adaptations off to a bad start in 2000 with Dungeons & Dragons, with Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God following in 2005. These joyless and derivative fantasy movies probably won't form the template for the TV show, which has an exciting director, producer, and showrunner attached. Still, the small screen project may have other issues of its own.

Drew Crevello is set to run The Forgotten Realms, the D&D TV show set in the eponymous campaign setting of Baldur's Gate fame and commissioned to stream on Netflix. The video games are just an example usage of the Realms in D&D releases. R.A. Salvatore's The Legend of Drizzt books brought the D&D species of drow to public knowledge, introducing the legendary Drizzt character. Despite all the exciting lore that the show could bring, I am concerned that Netflix may ruin the fun for everyone by repeating a pattern it has exhibited in the past.

Netflix's Dungeons & Dragons Show Is Exciting, But The Streamer's Track Record Makes Me Nervous

Netflix Has A Concerning Habit That Could Affect Dungeons & Dragons

I am excited about the continuation of the on-screen development of the Dungeons & Dragons franchise, but worried that the disappointing future of an Honor Among Thieves sequel may materialize in this instance too, in its own way. Honor Among Thieves was adored by critics and audience , earning 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite that, its box office response was disappointing. This didn't help it secure a sequel. I worry that the disappointing lack of a follow-up to Honor Among Thieves will be repeated in the form of a cancelation of The Forgotten Realms after season 1.

Honor Among Thieves star Sophia Lillis can also be seen in I Am Not Okay With This.

Netflix has a habit of canceling great shows after just one season. This seems to particularly apply to fantasy shows. The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself was one of my favorite TV shows of 2022, and that's because it was one of the best. It was a genuinely original low fantasy story empowering young people to embrace their natural abilities, no matter what they were. Lockwood & Co., The Society, and I Am Not Okay With This were also devastatingly canceled. A potential Honor Among Thieves franchise was stifled, and I hope The Forgotten Realms doesn't get stifled too.

Canceling The Forgotten Realms Show After 1 Season Would Repeat Honor Among Thieves' Sequel Disappointment

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves May Never Get A Sequel

I'm not convinced by Netflix's renewal strategy, and I don't want it to impact The Forgotten Realms. Big streamers like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video aren't normally totally transparent about their key metrics, performance, and reasons for renewal or cancelation. But Netflix appears to value hard metrics like viewership that don't necessarily reflect the potential return on investment of a show. Taking a more long-term view of their critically-acclaimed shows would probably help Netflix grow its service, allowing shows to blossom over multiple seasons and prove that they can drive ongoing subscriptions.

Joe Manganiello was working on a Dungeons & Dragons TV series, but this plan was canceled.

Honor Among Thieves bombed at the box office, but Hasbro had encountered the financial difficulty associated with the fallout of COVID-19 and had to sell eOne all before that. There are many reasons behind the extreme fan disappointment of the absence of a sequel. However, there are totally different circumstances surrounding the possible lack of a continuation of The Forgotten Realms after season 1. I'm worried Netflix will cancel the show if it shows any sign of slow viewership growth, considering its habit of canceling fantasy shows after just one season.

Bringing Dungeons & Dragons To The Screen Requires A Long-Term Commitment

Dungeons & Dragons Deserves Multiple Releases

The Dungeons & Dragons TV series coming up on Netflix has huge potential, but it needs Netflix to commit to it in the long-term. The movies necessitated Dungeons & Dragons to reassess its strategy, and thankfully, it did emerge with the incredibly strong offering that was Honor Among Thieves. But a sequel is unlikely, and that means that The Forgotten Realms is D&D fans' strongest hope of an ongoing D&D on-screen project. It could bring back the feeling of gameplay created by Honor Among Thieves, which was the movies' biggest asset.

Capturing the feeling of saving the world with friends, Honor Among Thieves can see its legacy continued by The Forgotten Realms, but Netflix should let this roll out over multiple seasons. Even if viewership figures are slow to pick up, the value of a franchise like D&D on Netflix's roster would reveal itself over time. Not only can the show attract the viewers of Stranger Things, which has the same producer and director attached (Shawn Levy), but it could adapt drow ranger Drizzt Do'Urden onto screens for the first time.

If The Forgotten Realms is done right, season 1 is the start of a long Dungeons & Dragons journey.

If Drizzt made a cameo in The Forgotten Realms that proved popular, he could get his own series or spinoff. This represents the best strategy for The Forgotten Realms in general. With such a huge wealth of D&D lore for the show to pull from, from the Harpers books to the numerous campaigns, The Forgotten Realms can scatter its episodes with Easter eggs and lore references while including some mind-blowing new lore drops that keep age-old fans intrigued. If The Forgotten Realms is done right, season 1 is the start of a long Dungeons & Dragons journey.