Why A Grocery Store Produce Section Was Pivotal To The Making Of Dungeons & Dragons
Why does this feel like it could be a D&D campaign?
Updated with video.
Sometimes things happen in real life that are so random and exciting that it makes you feel like you’ve rolled the dice during a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, and let the game (and your wild friends) decide what crazy things happens next. Well, this seemed to be the case for the creative team behind Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves as they were putting the pieces together to create the fantasy movie too. This is because the movie’s producer Jeremy Latcham revealed that a grocery store’s produce section and a run-in with the co-director Jonathan Goldstein played quite a role in getting this well-reviewed D&D movie made.
Latcham started this fun story by telling CinemaBlend that before he even met John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein when they were getting ready for Spider-Man: Homecoming he had read their script called Bus Drivers, and loved their work. He explained that they “nailed” the tone of Peter Parker’s story and the foundation of the Marvel movie was laid through their screenplay. Then when the producer left Marvel, he got a call from the two writers/directors, and they said they would like him to produce D&D. He was super interested in the project, and then, by happenstance, he got a call from Hasbro and eOne as well as Paramount to talk about the same movie.
After getting calls from “all three angles,” as Latcham put it, and getting excited about the prospect of the D&D movie, the producer then ran into Jonathan Goldstein at a grocery store of all places. And while standing in Vons they spoke about getting the ball rolling with this movie that ultimately ended up on the 2023 movie schedule. The producer recalled the story (which you can watch in the interview clip above), saying:
He continued his funny, yet fateful, story about this run-in at the grocery store, explaining the conversation he had with Goldstein about the D&D script:
Well, they did more than talk about it, they made a whole dang movie. Latham went on to talk about how happy he was that the trio got to work together again on this fantasy film, explaining:
Just by watching the movie you can sense that passion and fun Latcham talked about. From details like Jarnathan the bird to the incredible ensemble they brought together for this movie, they really pulled off something great, and fans have been loving it.
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The producer ended by saying he really loved working with the directors, and he explained that it had been a “great three years working with them.” Well, it's also been great for us, because this movie is such a fun time, and it’s pretty wild that we have a Vons produce section and some apples to partially thank for it.
Riley Utley is the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. She has written for national publications as well as daily and alt-weekly newspapers in Spokane, Washington, Syracuse, New York and Charleston, South Carolina. She graduated with her master’s degree in arts journalism and communications from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. Since joining the CB team she has covered numerous TV shows and movies -- including her personal favorite shows Ted Lasso and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. She also has followed and consistently written about everything from Taylor Swift to Fire Country, and she's enjoyed every second of it.