Dungeons & Dragons to Film at Historic British Cathedral

The Dungeons & Dragons movie will be filming at a historic British location next month. ComicBook.com has learned that Paramount will be filming scenes of its Dungeons & Dragons movie at the Wells Cathedral in the United Kingdom in early June. The Wells Cathedral is a Gothic-style cathedral built over 300 years that is notable for its over 300 sculpted figures nestled around the exterior of the building. In addition to its striking architecture, the Wells Cathedral site has multiple surviving medieval buildings on the site along with a picturesque backdrop of the British countryside.

Road closures posted by the Somerset County Council confirmed the news, noting that the roads around the cathedral will be closed from June 8th to June 12th, with August Street Films handling the on-site filming. The cathedral only re-opened to visitors a few weeks ago (as shown below.)

🎉 We are re-opening to all visitors on Monday! 🎉

There's a notable 'buzz' among staff and volunteers as preparations are made.
For details of opening hours for the Cathedral, Shop, and Café, why not read our latest newsletter? https://t.co/szDvOLcY28#WellsCathedral pic.twitter.com/28XOp3Z5Dd

— Wells Cathedral (@WellsCathedral1) May 12, 2021

Filming for Dungeons & Dragons began earlier this spring in Northern Ireland, but this is the first time we have an actual physical location identified as a filming spot. Details about the movie's plot have been kept under wraps, although we know that the movie will be set in the Forgotten Realms, which is perhaps the most iconic of Dungeons & Dragons' many fantasy worlds. A medieval cathedral could be a stand-in for countless locations in the Forgotten Realms, as that world is roughly analogous to a medieval society, albeit one with elves, magic, and constant extra-planar threats.

The cast of the film includes Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Rege-Jean Page, Justice Smith, Hugh Grant, and Sophia Lillis. Shadow and Bone's Daisy Head was also added to the cast earlier this week. The movie is being directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, the co-directors of Game Night and the co-writers of Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Paramount and eOne are hoping that Dungeons & Dragons will become a major tentpole media franchise. The largest and most well-known tabletop fantasy game for over 40 years, eOne (the media arm of Hasbro) is working on multiple live-action D&D projects, including a television show helmed by John Wick creator Derek Kolstad.

While Dungeons & Dragons was originally scheduled to be released in 2021, the movie has seen its premiere date pushed twice. The movie was moved to 2022 after Hollywood shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More recently, Paramount moved Dungeons & Dragons's release date to March 2023 as part of a wider shuffle of release dates designed to take advantage of theaters re-opening.