The characters they created weren’t defined by their superpowers or special abilities but by their various flaws and vulnerabilities.

“The impairments help to establish a character that has room for growth,” Daley says. “What gave us a lot of freedom to create fleshed-out backstories for each of our characters was the fact that they have a lot of flaws that they have to work through.”

This was even visible in the magic spells characters were allowed to use; as Goldstein points out, “There’s a tendency to think that magic can solve all problems, and we have our sorcerer address that directly in the film. Because it makes storytelling nearly impossible if you can solve any problem with a magical spell.”

But while each of the “heroes” (if you can call them that) in Honor Among Thieves has their own flaws and limitations, when they come together, they truly shine.

“It was important to us to find a diverse group, in terms of their personality types, their skill sets, what makes each of them appealing in their own unique way, which is obviously crucial to a good adventuring party in a campaign, but also crucial to a film ensemble,” Daley tells us. “You don’t want people that are similar; they all have to bring their host of bizarre personalities. And that to us was crucial.”

Having written the characters, the next step was to assemble the cast to play them. But for a Dungeons & Dragons movie, “playing” had a slightly different meaning…

“When the actors arrived in Belfast, we played a severalhours-long game of D&D with them,” Goldstein says. “And that gave those who were not familiar with it a quick taste of what the game is like and how you interact, and they played as their characters.”

It not only helped the cast bond and introduced them to the world but also informed the directors’ takes on the characters.

“It was informative, both to them and to us, because I think we incorporated some of the things we learned from that game into the film,” Goldstein says.

During their pre-shoot D&D game, the directors learned quite a bit about their cast.

“I would say that every time Justice Smith had to perform an action, it was Animal Friendship. A lot,” Daley recalls, referring to a spell that lets you convince a beast that you mean it no harm. “He relied on Animal Friendship at every turn, even in the least appropriate times.”

Goldstein adds, “He’d be falling off a cliff with no animals around, and he would still try Animal Friendship.”

Other players showed a far more in-depth grasp of the rules of the game. For instance, Regé-Jean Page, who plays the paladin, Xenk.

“We got a first glimpse at his true geekdom because he very much knew the mechanics of the game,” Daley says. “I think he spent a lot of time playing role-playing games, and despite his being incredibly handsome and talented and an athletic fighter, he’s also one of the biggest nerds I’ve ever met.”

While the game was informative, it was also fun and set the tone for the kind of experience Goldstein and Daley wanted to create with Honor Among Thieves.

“I want audiences to feel better leaving the theater than they felt coming in,” Daley says. “I have my own personal experiences with some of the movies that shaped me and made me want to become a filmmaker. That feeling was something that drove me throughout this process, to get other people to feel that way as well. That, to me, is the most gratifying thing a filmmaker could ask for.”

So is this the end of their quest? Or do further adventures await? Neither of the directors will be drawn on the question of a potential sequel. It is clear they are excited for people to see the world they have created, but when it comes to talk of a broader franchise, they take their cues from producer Jeremy Latcham, who was previously the producer on the mega franchise-founding Iron Man movie, as well as several of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s high points since.

“We’d be excited to dive back into this world, but our producer Jeremy Latcham likes to remind us of his approach in the early days of Marvel—make one good movie,” Goldstein says. “Don’t think about universe building. Don’t think about franchises. Just put everything into the one movie you’re making. Then if it works, you do more. That’s how we approached it.”

Daley agrees, adding, “The thing that we are most excited about now is not even the potential for a sequel, but just finally being able to present this film that has been a labor of love and a lot of hard work on not only our part but on the part of the hundreds and hundreds of technicians and filmmakers that worked alongside us to be able to bring that out to the world.”