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EXCLUSIVE: In one of Netflix’s biggest TV bets in the fantasy space to date, the streamer has taken in for development The Forgotten Realms, a live-action Dungeons & Dragons series, sources tell Deadline. The project comes from one of the top producers on the streamer’s roster, Shawn Levy (Stranger Things, Deadpool & Wolverine), writer-showrunner Drew Crevello (WeCrashed) and Hasbro Entertainment.
As the title suggests, the proposed series will take place in the iconic campaign setting and centerpiece of the Dungeons & Dragons universe, a fantasy world that is home to some of the brand’s most famous characters and launchpad for some of D&D’s most popular adventures.
Crevello wrote the pilot and serves as showrunner; he will executive produce the potential series with Levy and Dan Levine of Levy’s 21 Laps, sources said.
Reps for Netflix and Hasbro Entertainment declined comment.
Ever since then-Hasbro subsidiary eOne in 2021 made launching a live-action Dungeons & Dragon series a top priority, Netflix has felt like a logical home for it given the major boost the streamer has given to the classic fantasy role-playing game through its prominent presence on one of Netflix’s biggest shows, Stranger Things.
The project’s initial incarnation, overseen creatively by Red Notice filmmaker Rawson Marshall Thurber, with Crevello subsequently joining him as showrunner, landed at Paramount+ in early 2023 with a straight-to-series order and eOne co-producing alongside Paramount Pictures, the studio behind the 2023 movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.
The project ultimately didn’t move forward amid a strategy shift at Paramount+ and ownership change at eOne, which was acquired by Lionsgate.
With Hasbro’s in-house division Hasbro Entertainment now in charge, the Dungeons and Dragons adaptation underwent redevelopment with Crevello at the helm and a brand new concept not related to the past D&D development with Thurber and Paramount or the Honor Among Thieves movie.
The project drew interest from Levy, who joined it in a serendipitous team-up since he is director/executive producer on Stranger Things.
With Levy on board, The Forgotten Realms series was taken out to Netflix where 21 Laps has a deal. After lengthy negotiations, which is not unusual for an IP of that caliber, I hear the fantasy series is now set at the streamer for further development. In success, it could launch a D&D universe, I hear.
Featuring humans, elves, orcs and other fantastical creatures engaging in wars, treasure hunts and campaigns, the D&D game, one of Hasbro’s key franchise brands hailing from Wizards of the Coast, is overseen by a host, known as the Dungeon Master, and employs a signature multisided dice. More than 50 million fans have played D&D since it was first launched 49 years ago, including videogames and livestream entertainment on Twitch and YouTube.
Levy most recently co-wrote, produced and directed Marvel’s blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine movie. He is currently working on the upcoming fifth and final season of Stranger Things.
Crevello created and executive produced the Apple limited series WeCrashed starring Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway.
