Dungeons & Dragons filmmakers John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein have been drafted in to write the screenplay for a Monopoly film.
Last time we heard about plans to bring the board game Monopoly to the screen, Margot Robbie’s Luckychap production company had come aboard. This latest effort to adapt the game began when Lionsgate acquired Entertainment One from Hasbro in late 2023, with the Monopoly rights being part of that deal.
Luckychap was behind Barbie, a film which managed to both venerate and subvert Mattel’s toy doll line, so Lionsgate likely moved Monopoly onto the fast track. All in the hope that Robbie and her fellow collaborators could bottle the same lightning twice.
Barbie had plenty to say about gender roles in the 21st century, and Monopoly could say something about issues with late-stage capitalism. With his top hat, monocle and covetous desire to buy up every piece of property he can, the Monopoly mascot who adorns the cover of each game box is the archetypal capitalist and is certainly ripe for satirising.
Thanks to The Hollywood Reporter, we now know who will be handling writing duties on the project, and things continue to look promising. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves writers/directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein have been drafted in to pen the script and with the 2023 comedy adventure based on another classic tabletop game, the duo have experience of how to bring a beloved game to life.
Read more: Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves review | Crowd pleasing cinema
Daley and Goldstein also wrote the excellent 2018 comedy Game Night, which cleverly blurred the lines between game and reality. Given how that can often be a rich vein for subversive writing (think Barbie or perhaps The LEGO Movie) and we wonder if that could be a feature of their screenplay.
As is so often the case, the real story behind the board game’s success features a tale of obnoxious greed, and we wonder if any of those real-life story elements will make their way into the film. Not that we’re asking for something like Air, mind you – we’re still not sure if really want this growing surge of product-based movies that Hollywood seems intent on making. Barbie proved that you can pay tribute to the real-life story behind a toy’s creation in ways that are both deft and touching. (The makers of last year’s Hugh Grant horror, Heretic, also included Monopoly’s origin story.)
Could a film based on a board game that encourages greed and selfishness end up fitting into the ever-growing ‘eat the rich’ genre? Should we be preparing to shunt Parasite over to one side and prepare to anoint Monopoly as the new apex of this bracket of films?
Perhaps not, but the film now has two talented writers joining a daring production company. We’re hoping that what emerges at the other end of this process encapsulates those qualities. We’ll bring you more on this one as we hear it.
Presumably, Goldstein and Daley will be paid £200 for writing the screenplay. More if they pass Go.
