Jonathan Goldstein says an Honor Among Thieves 2 script exists, but the Dungeons and Dragons movie sequel still faces budget, timing, cast, and franchise questions.
Image: enworld.org
A finished script is real, but the movie is not greenlit
The strongest new sign of life for Dungeons and Dragons Honor Among Thieves 2 is also the clearest reminder that the sequel remains stuck before the production line. Jonathan Goldstein, who co-wrote and co-directed 2023’s Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves with John Francis Daley, told ScreenRant at San Diego Comic-Con that he and his collaborators were hired to write a follow-up and have done so. His update, repeated by Polygon, CBR, FandomWire, and TheWrap, was blunt: “We actually wrote a sequel to Dungeons & Dragons. We were hired to write it. I don’t know that it will see the light of day for a number of financial reasons. They’re expensive movies to make, but it’d be great fun to do it. We love that cast, and we think we wrote something that fans would like.” That is the confirmed fact at the center of the story. An Honor Among Thieves 2 script exists. Goldstein wants to make it. He believes it would please fans. No outlet in the provided source material reports a greenlight, production start, release window, confirmed returning cast, or final studio commitment.
The script changes the conversation without solving the financing problem
For fans, the script update matters because it moves the D&D Honor Among Thieves sequel out of the realm of casual actor enthusiasm and into a more concrete development stage. A studio or rights-holder commissioning a screenplay is a real step, and Goldstein’s wording, “We were hired to write it,” indicates this was not a speculative fan pitch. At the same time, a finished script is one of the cheaper moves in a film’s long march compared with locking cast deals, building sets, shooting large-scale fantasy action, finishing visual effects, and marketing the release worldwide. Goldstein’s own caveat is the controlling fact here: he does not know whether the script will ever be produced because the films are expensive. That makes the current status unusually bittersweet. There may be a campaign on paper, with the rhythm of a party, a quest, and set-pieces already mapped out, but the gate to the dungeon is still held by the economics of a theatrical franchise.
The first film’s reception and box office are pulling in opposite directions
The tension around a Dungeons and Dragons movie sequel starts with the split between affection and accounting. CBR cites Rotten Tomatoes scores of 91% from critics and 92% from audiences for Honor Among Thieves, and says the movie has grown more beloved in the three years since release. TheWrap similarly reports that the film had strong reviews and that its reputation has continued to grow as the Dungeons & Dragons property found more fans. The financial side is colder. CBR reports the film made just over $208 million worldwide on a budget of around $150 million before marketing costs. Polygon gives a close figure of $208.2 million on a reported $150 million budget. TheWrap reports a $205 million global gross against a $150 million production budget and says that theatrical sum was not enough to recoup the film’s costs. Those numbers explain Goldstein’s hesitation. Honor Among Thieves played like a nimble adventure movie, with a comic ensemble engine and fantasy action built for a crowd, but the business case for another expensive theatrical swing is weaker than the goodwill around it.
Cast momentum is part of the sequel’s value, and part of its risk
Goldstein’s quote puts the cast at the emotional center of the potential sequel: “We love that cast.” The first film’s principal ensemble, as listed across the source material and Paramount’s official production information cited by FandomWire, included Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Justice Smith, Sophia Lillis, and Hugh Grant. CBR describes the movie as following unlikely heroes on a quest to steal an ancient relic while facing evil forces, with humor running alongside the serious fantasy stakes. That chemistry is central to why fans keep asking about a continuation. A Dungeons & Dragons party only works when the table has rhythm, and Honor Among Thieves found a movie version of that rhythm through banter, shifting competence, and characters who could turn a plan collapsing into part of the fun. The risk is that none of the provided reporting confirms any returning cast for Dungeons and Dragons Honor Among Thieves 2. The longer a sequel waits, the harder schedules, salaries, and creative availability become, especially when the original appeal depends so heavily on ensemble timing.
Studio timing may be as important as fan demand
TheWrap points to another complication beyond one film’s profit-and-loss sheet: corporate change around the companies connected to Honor Among Thieves. TheWrap reports that Paramount, which co-produced and distributed the 2023 film, was acquired by Skydance Media in August 2025. It also reports that eOne, once a Hasbro subsidiary connected to the Dungeons & Dragons rights, was acquired by Lionsgate in December 2023. Those changes do not automatically kill the sequel, but they do mean any Dungeons and Dragons movie sequel has to compete for attention inside shifted corporate priorities. A new leadership structure may look at the existing script, the brand value, the fan response, and the first film’s cost, then ask whether this is a theatrical tentpole, a lower-budget restart, a streaming play, or a project to leave dormant. EN World’s forum discussion reflects how tabletop fans are reading the news: excitement that a script exists, frustration that business decisions may be blocking it, and skepticism that a paid script equals a commitment. The fan reaction is understandable, but the confirmed status remains narrower than the hope around it.
The wider D&D screen strategy is still unsettled
The sequel question also sits beside an unresolved television picture. TheWrap reports that a Dungeons & Dragons live-action series was in development for Paramount+, but that the streamer nixed its plans in May 2024, with the project later reported to have found a new home at Netflix in February 2025. CBR identifies that project as The Forgotten Realms and says Drew Crevello was reported to have boarded as showrunner in February 2025, while also noting that the project has had no fruitful updates since and that its current status and release timing are unclear. That matters because a film sequel is easier to justify when the broader screen franchise looks active and coordinated. If D&D has a visible television presence, tabletop momentum, and renewed mainstream attention, a movie sequel can feel like part of a larger campaign. If the TV side remains quiet, a costly Honor Among Thieves follow-up has to carry more of the brand argument by itself.
What fans can safely expect from here
The practical guidance is simple: do not treat the Honor Among Thieves 2 script as a release announcement. There is no reported filming date, release date, platform plan, price, trailer, casting confirmation, or official title beyond the shorthand being used by outlets and fans. The useful takeaway is that the sequel is alive creatively, but not operationally. Goldstein and his collaborators have written a version of the next adventure, and he says it was designed with fans in mind. The unanswered questions are whether a studio will accept the cost, whether the original cast can be reassembled while the movie still has cultural momentum, and whether the appetite for Dungeons & Dragons on screen is strong enough to overcome the first film’s theatrical math. For now, Dungeons and Dragons Honor Among Thieves 2 is a completed script waiting for someone to roll high on timing, budget confidence, and franchise belief.