‘Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves’ and What it Can Teach Screenwriters

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is the second major theatrical film that bears the Dungeons & Dragons brand, and perhaps the abysmal first outing from 2000 might have something to do with why this film has been overlooked. The new film, written by Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley and Michael Gilio, stretches the bounds of what fantasy films can be, leaning in to the absurdity of world building over the decades D&D has existed, while also delivering a charming and heartfelt romp that is more fun than filler.

The movie tells the tale of Edgin (Chris Pine), a bard who has lost his wife to the evil Red Wizards. He teams up with a barbarian named Holga (Michelle Rodriguez), a terrible wizard named Simon (Justice Smith), and a con man named Forge (Hugh Grant) to pull off heists and support his daughter. After a heist gone wrong, he’s sent to prison with Holga and Forge takes over parenting duties of his daughter, Kira (Chloe Coleman). Forge is having his strings pulled by the same Red Wizards who killed Edgin’s wife and he’s looking to pull off a heist that will bring his daughter back to him and his wife back to life.

It’s fun and exactly the sort of movie you’d want to while away an evening watching. On the surface, it might seem like some standard Hollywood pablum, but it has some deeper layers as you watch that are worth taking a deeper look at.

As we analyze a couple of things you’ll want to look at from a writing perspective, I’ll warn you that there will be major spoilers from here on out.

Leaning in

If there’s one thing the Dungeons & Dragons movie does is reward fans of the franchise. If you know the difference between an Aarakocra and a Tabaxi puts you in a place where the jokes and setups are going to land a lot harder. The writers leaned into the universe hard and didn’t make any apologies for it. They were able to balance that, though, with respect for people who might not be familiar with the world. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never heard of Winterfell or the Underdark, the story guides you naturally through everything that’s important. 

If you’re working on a story in a dense fantasy world (whether it’s established or one of your own making) look for ways to strike the balance between exposition about the world necessary for the plot and flavor to enhance the story slightly for those in the know. 

At the beginning of the film, Edgin talks about his eagerness to get Jarnathan listening to his story as he pleads for parole because he’s an Aarakocra. For those familiar with D&D, they know that means he’s a large bird-creature who has the power of flight. Seeing Edgin positioned in front of the window and dismayed by Jarnathan’s absence is a funny gag for those who know, but when Jarnathan enters and the plan is enacted, it’s just as funny for those who don’t know. 

Don’t rely on the world for anything but flavor and you’re going to have a broader audience on your side.

Save the Cat

“Save the Cat” has been a cliché in screenwriting circles for a long time. I’ve spoken to agents who abhor it because it creates a paint-by-numbers situation for writers. But if you’re going to take elements from it, make it a gag and know what you’re doing. 

In Dungeons & Dragons, there is a character named Xenk Yendar. He’s a Paladin, and for those who know the game know that Paladins are like the best of the best. They’re absolute goody-two-shoes who will do what is right in almost every situation because it’s just in their nature. When Xenk is introduced, we see a weeping Tabaxi, which is the equivalent of an anthropomorphized, human-like cat in the universe. Then, we see a giant fish. Xenk arrives to sooth the fish, who promptly spits out a Tabaxi kitten, reuniting it with its mother.

This is the most on-the-nose use of the “Save the Cat” method ever, but it works here without an eye-roll because it’s played for a laugh. This character is so idiosyncratically on the straight and narrow, he’ll walk right over a boulder instead of around it. 

Using these screenwriting tools in a self-aware way is a great way to keep the audience on your side and laughing, rather than have them exhausted from seeing exactly what you’re doing.

Foreshadowing and Subtext

The screenwriters did a pretty elegant job of foreshadowing the ultimate theme of Edgin’s journey as the film progresses. As you watch, pay attention to his dialogue during all of the flashback sequences with his wife. It sets up the entire dilemma he’s going to have by the end of the film. 

In one particular scene, he and his wife are frightened by a massive dragonfly-like creature they’re trying to shoo from their house. Edgin keeps trying to catch it, but his wife sagely opens the window and chides him to stop trying to catch it. That was his problem. As the film progresses, Edgin is forced to let go of many things he’s trying to catch in order to become the person he needs to be. Deep down, he’s good, but he’s trying to capture something that doesn’t suit him at all. 

Look for ways you can subtly introduce those ideas and subtext. Robert McKee once said that you can’t have subtext in fantasy, but these flashback scenes are dripping with it in the best ways and the film is better for it. Once the dragonfly-like creature is charged with that meaning from the conversation in the flashback, its reappearance at a key moment when Edgin is making his decision feels clever and right. 

Look for those moments in your own writing. Often, you won’t know how to insert them into your own work until the second draft, but it’s worth finding those moments. They pay dividends in the final product.

Defy Expectations

Don’t be afraid to be weird. Or funny.

In Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, we hear a lot about Holga’s lost love and the man she left her village in exile for. She’s deeply wounded and she shows these bits of vulnerability only to Edgin who knows the situation. As an audience member, we expect a default. Whoever it is that Holga is holding a torch for, they most likely exhibit the same strengths and qualities that she does. In our mind, we paint a picture of a beefy, Conan the Barbarian-like warrior. But when we get to the reality of the situation, it almost seems absurd on its face, but feels so inevitable.

Halfway through the film, we meet her lost love, Marlimin (Bradley Cooper), we find that he defies all of our expectations. He’s a halfling, more than half the size of Holga. He’s a quiet and sensitive man who loves deeply and tenderly. He cried himself to sleep on so many nights, wondering where Holga was. On first blush, it seems like a joke, but for a character who exhibits so much vulnerability in her conversations about him and their relationship, it makes perfect sense. Opposites attract and it adds an interesting layer to a character that could have easily been a mindless version of the Incredible Hulk, smashing everything in sight.

Take a look at what the audience is expecting and see how you can make the story better by turning it on its ear. When they expect you to go left, see what good you can do going right instead.

Making the Ending Count

The promise the writers of Honor Among Thieves makes us through the movie is that Edgin is going to finally obtain the scroll of resurrection in order to bring his wife back to life. He’s convinced this is the best course of action, for himself, for his daughter, for his extended family. But through the course of the narrative, he grows and realizes that this is a lie he’s telling himself. Holga is the character who has been there for him and his daughter, and is really the only maternal figure his daughter has ever known. When Holga is speared by the villain and dies, Edgin has to make a choice (presaged by the appearance of that dragonfly). 

Many narratives would have simply followed through with the initial promise and had Edgin resurrect his wife, but showing him make that sacrifice for Holga and for his daughter, Edgin shows immense growth. It defies expectations and creates a much stronger ending. Making the ending count in a way that causes audiences to wonder how they would react in those same situations is a perfect way to engage them and ensure they’re investing in the narrative personally.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is, by no means, a perfect film. It has its flaws and the tone is so specific that it might not have found a broad enough audience, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth study. For fans of the tabletop game, the movie was pitch-perfect, a reasonable facsimile of the tone you’ll find playing games with your friends at your dinner table. The writers knew what kind of movie they were making and for what audience, and that goodwill went a long way.

I just hope we get a sequel.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is still in select theaters and is currently streaming with your Paramount+ subscription.