Dungeons & Dragons’ New Netflix Success After $208M Disappointment Shows Honor Among Thieves 2 Must Happen

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves was a big fantasy movie for Paramount, but its disappointing box office shouldn’t end the chances for a sequel. Starring Chris Pine as Edgin, a bard in the fantastical take on the hit game Dungeons and Dragons, the movie brought the best parts of the interactive world to life. Unfortunately, though the film was faithful to the spirit of Dungeons and Dragons, it wasn’t an overwhelming success at the box office. Despite this, there are substantial reasons why the franchise should get another chance and approve a sequel.

While the harsh realities about the future of Honor Among Thieves 2 make it unlikely that a continuation of Edgin and his friends’ stories will hit the big screen, not all hope is lost. Like so many fantasy movies that trend on Netflix after box office misses, Honor Among Thieves has found new life on streaming and has reached a wide and excited audience base. As viewership expands and interest in a potential sequel grows, there’s a clear path forward for Honor Among Thieves 2. Investing in a sequel might be a risk, but it could also pay off well.

Honor Among Thieves Has Had Some Popularity Since Release, Despite Being A Box Office “Bomb”

While failure at the box office is relative, Honor Among Thieves has done better on streaming services

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves has become a Netflix hit since the movie was released on streaming. Though the film received strong critical and audience acclaim, this didn’t translate to a huge success at the box office, which is always disappointing for a project with big stars and recognizable IP. However, the second life it’s found on streaming has proven the quality of the movie. Since it was first added to Paramount Plus, audiences quickly flocked to stream the film, and this energy has only increased after Honor Among Thieves joined Netflix’s lineup.

For many other films, the amount of money that Honor Among Thieves made while it was in theaters would’ve been something to celebrate. However, compared to its budget, it didn’t earn enough to make a strong case for the second installment of the narrative. Honor Among Thieves had a worldwide gross of $207,854,947 with an opening of $37,205,784 (via The Numbers). With a budget of just over $150 million, this wasn’t a devastating box office, but it could have been a lot better. For a fantasy movie of this scale, it was surprising that it didn’t make more.

When compared to box office failures like Furiosa or Borderlands, the modest returns for Honor Among Thieves make the film look much better. Opening with $37 million is a strong start, and if the movie had kept up that momentum, it would have been a hit. However, it makes sense that it found a home on streaming since trends are showing that audiences are watching more movies at home. Based on the reviews and reporting surrounding the film, the film’s quality was never up for debate, and its prominence on Netflix cements this.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Deserved A Bigger Box Office – So What Happened?

There’s a lot to love about Honor Among Thieves, making it surprising it didn’t do better

Though the budget was high, it’s hard to say where the film could’ve pulled back, as the project required significant and believable GCI. Had Honor Among Thieves not invested in the visual effects, it likely would’ve been an even bigger failure. The movie looks good and will probably hold up for a long time because the effects serve the larger story, which is a fun and digestible heist with some heart and drama thrown in. With a compelling narrative and strong performances, it makes sense that the movie is connecting so well with audiences now.

Since the budget was justified, this is the primary reason why the film’s performance looks bad. However, there are other factors that played into the box office performance. Had the marketing campaign been larger, or if the film was released at a different time of year, it might have been met with completely different results. Though D&D isn’t the most universal IP, it still has a significant following and has a general enough world to connect with any fantasy lover. Casting actors like Pine and Hugh Grant should also have been a draw for audiences.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves 2 Could Be A Great Movie

There’s franchise potential for the Dungeons & Dragons universe

If the reception of Honor Among Thieves proves anything, it’s that Honor Among Thieves 2 would be an even better installment of the franchise. The narrative of Honor Among Thieves suggests that the filmmakers are familiar with the ins and outs of D&D and would be able to continue the film series for many installments by focusing on different aspects of the game. One of the most difficult parts of any fantasy franchise is establishing the world and providing natural exposition, and the first movie has already tackled this with positive results.

This means Honor Among Thieves 2 would have to deliver on the promise of the first movie and explore the many potential stories of the D&D world. There’s so much lore within D&D, and the potential for new characters, settings, and storylines is only limited by the filmmakers’ imaginations. Now that the protagonists have been established and the audience knows the rules of the world, there’s room for even more action-packed adventures and character-driven stories that would keep the audience engaged. It helps that the characters the first movie introduced are individuals worth spending time with.

Is Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves 2 Going To Happen?

After the first movie’s underwhelming performance, there’s a narrow path forward for the sequel

Even with the recent success and praise for Honor Among Thieves, there isn’t a strong possibility that a sequel will be confirmed. It’s unlikely that Paramount would be willing to spend $150 million on a sequel unless the box office was guaranteed, meaning the sequel would have to be made for significantly less money to make it attractive to the studio. This would be difficult but not impossible, and since D&D is a long-running and familiar piece of IP, Paramount could circle back to the project in the future.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves might be the last installment in this particular adaptation of the D&D world. While this would be disappointing, it’s not a terrible end to the story, as Edgin healed his relationship with his daughter, and each of the other characters reached a level of fulfillment and self-acceptance. The story came to a natural and satisfying end, leaving room for additional installments. Had the film ended on a cliffhanger, not having a sequel would have been devastating. Even if the second movie never comes out, it will always be enjoyable to revisit the original.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a fantasy action-comedy film based on the popular tabletop game and set in the Forgotten Realms campaign by the original creators. Chris Pine stars as a song-slinging thief named Edgin Darvis, who is hired to find a lost relic but manages to anger the wrong people along the way. With his mismatched crew, each inspired by a race and class from D&D lore, Edgin will lead his team to complete their task – and many innocent lives depend on it.

Director

Jonathan Goldstein , John Francis Daley

Release Date

March 31, 2023

Studio(s)

Paramount Pictures , Hasbro , Entertainment One

Writers

Michael Gillio , Jonathan Goldstein , John Francis Daley

Runtime

134 Minutes

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