The magical world of Dungeons & Dragons has inspired many great movies and, many films (or their source material) have had an influence on the creation of D&D as well.
On this list, you will see the 25 best movies, and TV shows that relates to D&D the most, either by its fantastical world, characters and story, or just by its role-playing game nature.
25. The Witcher (TV Series)
Henry Cavill ditches the cape to take on the title role of Geralt of Rivia.
Based on the famous video game series The Witcher, the tv series will follow Geralt of Rivia the lone monster hunter, who encounters menacing beasts, and sometimes people who could be even more evil than the fiends he slaughters. The series will star Henry Cavill and airs in 2019 on Netflix.
Although best known from the video games, the series will use big amounts of material from the books written about the series.
24. Beowulf
Ray Winstone stars as Beowulf.
The great warrior Beowulf is tasked with defeating the monstrous Grendel by the Danish king. During the epic events of the movie, he also meets with Grendel’s mother in a watery lair where he bargains with the devil. This story tells the tale of how Beowulf overcomes his challenges to become the saviour of the world once again.
The movie stars Angelina Jolie as the mother of Grendel.
23. Hercules
Dwyane the Rock Johnson shines as the Demigod.
Hercules, the Greek demigod now lives as a mercenary for hire, with his powerful band of warriors. One day he gets a job from the King of Thrace to defeat an evil warlord, which puts Hercules’ great strength to the test.
To prepare for the role, Dwayne Johnson took on a grueling training routine for eight months.
22. 300
King Leonidas and his men face the Persians.
300 the depiction of the historical battle between the Spartans, and the Persians. King Leonidas and his force of 300 men must face the humongous army of the Persians, and their leader Xerxes at Thermopylae in 480 B.C.
Gerard Butler trained in a gym for 4 hours every day for 4 months to prepare for the role.
21. Clash of the Titans
The Stygian Witches.
The demigod Perseus, the son of Zeus must stop the raising of the underworld’s fiendish armies. He must also defeat the Kraken, Medusa, and the Lord of the underworld, Hades. He must do this in order to protect his world and the heavens.
Sam Worthington and Liam Neeson star in this action-packed take on Greek Mythology.
20. Conan the Barbarian
This role was first played by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Conan the Barbarian is the only one who can save the nations of Hyboria from the unspeakable evil that roams its lands. While battling horrific beasts he also has a personal quest, to get revenge on a Cimmerian warrior who murdered his father when he was a little boy.
In this version of Conan the Barbarian, Jason Momoa takes the role of the mighty fighter.
19. The Last Kingdom (TV series)
Premired in 2015 on the BBC.
The Danish armies have invaded the land of England. In fierce battles, all of them fell, but the kingdom of Wessex. Uhtred, an English boy is captured by the Danes, and gets raised as their own. Now, he has to choose between his homeland and his up bringers. Uhtred has to decide where his heart and loyalty pulls him more in this epic story.
The series were shot primarily in Budapest.
18. Season of the Witch
Nicholas Cage and Ron Perlman star in this fantasy Medival tale.
The black plague devastates the land. To put a stop to this, the church commands 2 knights to capture and bring a witch to them, who might be the source of the disease. Throughout the journey , the heroes encounter many mythical creatures and hostile environments. But what they find at the remote Abbey , truly devastates the knights. Now, they must face an incredibly powerful force to save the land.
Nicolas Cage learned to ride a horse for this film.
17. Warcraft
Based on the popular RPG game.
Based on the international phenomena World of Warcraft games, made by Blizzard, Warcraft is about an Orc horde that invades Azeroth through a magic portal, and it is up to some human heroes, and orcs to defend their home. But who or what is really behind these attacks. Our protagonists must face a true evil that pulls the strings behind these events.
An Orcish dialect was created specifically for the movie.
16. Your Highness
This film features Natalie Portman showing off her archery skills.
The epic story of knighthood. Two brothers set out on a quest to rescue the heir to the kingdom’s fiancée. The Prince is accompanied by his lousy brother, who causes nothing but trouble. Thadeous and Fabious must find a way to work together if they wish to succeed on their mission to save Belladonna, and the kingdom from the evil wizard Leezar.
James Franco took sword training for nine months before and during filming.
15. King Arthur
A gritty take on the classic legend.
This movie re-imagines the classic legend of King Arthur.. The film is about Arthur’s illegitimate son Owain, who must learn to take on his father’s role as a true king for the realm.
The movie is also known as Excalibur Rising.
14. Solomon Kane
James Purefoy stars as Solomon Kane.
An ex mercenary for Queen Elizabeth, Solomon Kane discovers that he is bound for hell and since then lives a life of peace. That is until a young girl gets kidnapped, and her family gets killed by the followers of an evil sorcerer. Solomon now must go back to his violent self, and awake the killer within himself in order to save her.
The movie was shot over a period of twelve weeks.
13. King Arthur (2004)
A more realistic take on the Legend of King Arthur.
In this adaptation of Arthur’s legend, the events are more realistic than in any other version. This movie focuses on the politics, and the different historical aspects of the era in which Arthur ruled. But despite lacking the mythical elements, it is one of the best takes on the king’s legend.
Ivano Marescotti didn't speak any English when he was cast as Bishop Germanius, and had to learn the language simultaneously as he rehearsed the role.
12. Robin Hood
Rusell Crowe stars as the hero Robin Hood.
Set in 12th century England, Robin and his loyal marauders arrive in Nottingham to fulfill a promise. But what they find ‘slightly’ alters their plans. They must fight corruption within the village, and form an uprising to weaken then essentially take over the crown for the sake of the people.
It is the second highest-grossing medieval film.
11. 47 Ronan
Keanu Reeves stars in the samari-warrior inspired film.
Powerful samurai, who were banished from the land of Ako, along with a half breed get together to avenge the death of their master, who has been killed by an evil shogun. The 47 Ronin is an amazing far eastern tale about powerful warriors whose master was dishonoured, and now they must fight their way through the ruthless shogun’s spies and allies to finally get their revenge.
According to Keanu Reeves, filming was first done in Japanese for the sake of the supporting cast, and then filming was done in English.
10. Lloyd the Conqueror
A hilarious take on classic LARPing.
Our main character is Lloyd, a college student who has plans and dreams. He and his two best friends, Oswald and Patrick must join their professor, Derek in the league of LARP (Live Action Role Playing) in order to pass their Medieval exam. In this game, Demons & Dwarves, the teacher, who wants to keep his title as the champion of LARP, becomes a dark wizard and of course, our characters have to face him, and other difficulties along their adventure.
The movie features the first live-action battle between a Unicorn and Centaur.
9. Knights of Badassdom
Peter Dinklege prior to Game of Thrones.
Joe is just after a breakup when his friends 'kidnap' him and take him to a LARP game to cheer him up. However, a player accidentally summons a demon by reading a spell from a book he had bought on eBay. Later it turns out it's a real lost spell book. The monster resembles Joe's ex-girlfriend, and feed on the player's souls. That's where the serious battle begins; certain friends start to kill, others try to save their loved ones.
The main cast went through Live Action Role Playing sessions before filming and Peter Dinklage was declared the most successful out of everyone.
8. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
A live action adaptation of the popular video game.
Adopted by the King of Persia, Dastan grows up amongst royals, and quickly becomes a great warrior,and Prince material. After taking over the city of Alamut, Dastan encounters a princess, and a strange dagger that holds mysterious power. After being framed for the murder of the King, Dastan and the Princess have to find their way through dark forces in order to unravel the conspiracy behind the murder, and discover a plan that aims to destroy the whole world.
Jake Gyllenhaal gained ten pounds of muscle for the role of Dastan.
7. King Arthur: Legend of the Sword
Charlie Hunnam stars the legendary King Arthur.
Another great version of the same story, Arthur is now an orphan and is brought up on the streets, without knowing about his true past. The killer of his parents, Vortigern wants to make sure that no heir for the throne can arise. When he orders all the young men to try to pull the legendary sword out from the rock, after a sudden surprise, Arthur must start to think about what he is going to do as now everybody knows, he has the birthright for the throne.
This is the first installment of a planned six-film series.
6. The 13th Warrior
Antonio Banderas stars in this action-fantasy film.
Ibn Fadlan is an emissary from Baghdad on his way to meet with the King of Saqaliba when he suddenly gets captured by a gang of Vikings. Despite their differences, he spends more time with his captivators,and they form a mutual respect and Ibn is now welcomed in their society. But now, Ibn must join in their homeland to fight back an invasion by a big band of bloodthirsty invaders who want to destroy and eat everything…humans included.
One of the Viking ships used in the movie is now in the Norwegian pavilion in the EPCOT Center at Walt Disney World.
5. Kingdom of Heaven
Orlando Bloom's horseback riding from LOTRs really came in hand while shooting.
Balian of Ibelin, a blacksmith ends up in the city in Jerusalem, which is in great danger by the crusades. He finds himself in the middle of the religious wars in which he takes on the role of defender of Jerusalem, and its people against all odds, facing an enormous army. Balian must learn what it means to be a true knight if he wishes to defeat his enemies.
Ridley Scott received many letters of thanks and congratulations from Muslim groups for his even-handed depiction of the religion.
4. The Hobbit Trilogy
Benedict Cumberbatch shines as Smaug the Dragon
I don’t think I have to introduce this trilogy. In the epic tale of J.R.R. Tolkien, we can watch Bilbo Baggins’ adventures 60 years before the Lord of The Rings takes place. Journey with Bilbo through dangerous forests, frightening dungeons, and see him face humongous dragons, fierce orc warriors and evil forces.
Dwarvish was designed by J.R.R. Tolkien to sound like a Semitic language, and the history of the dwarves themselves resembles that of the ancient Hebrews.
3. Game of Thrones
The Mother of Dragons.
Another fan favorite Game of Thrones is about noble families who are fighting for the control over the land of Westeros, while in the background, an ancient evil force awakens that has long been forgotten. The series is filled with epic battles, political conspiracies, betrayals and many ruthless deaths of beloved characters.
It is the 1st TV series in history to be screened in IMAX theaters.
2. Spartacus (TV Series)
Andy Whitfield stars as the main character Spartacus.
The series follows the greatest gladiator in history, Spartacus, who has led a slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Captured by Glaber in an attack, Spartacus is condemned to death as a gladiator. But our hero overcomes every warrior who is ordered to kill him, and becomes the crowd favorite. While getting powerful allies, a plan starts to develop with the end goal of taking on the Roman Republic.
According to historians, two out of every three gladiators survived their matches.
1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
The Return of the King won 11 Oscars.
The greatest tale of all. The one that formed a generation’s dream of a fantasy world, Lord of theRings. A small hobbit with his 8 companions set out on a journey to destroy the most powerful weapon in all of Middle-earth, the One Ring, and save the world from the evil dark lord, Sauron.
Director Peter Jackson gave one of the rings used in the movies to Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis as a gift when the shoot was finished. They both thought they had the only one.
