New Ravenloft D&D TV Show in Development at Netflix
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Article Summary
- Netflix is developing a live action D&D TV series set in Ravenloft and focusing on Strahd von Zarovich.
- The show is being created by screenwriter John August and Academy Award-winning director Alfonso Cuarón.
- It was also revealed that Shawn Levy’s Netflix Forgotten Realms TV show is no longer in development.
- No official release date has been announced and it may be several years (if ever) before Ravenloft hits Netflix.
The Mists have parted over one of the most terrifying places in existence: Hollywood. That’s according to a recent Deadline article which has reported that Netflix is currently developing a live action D&D television series set in Ravenloft. The show will focus on the origins of the vampire Count Strahd von Zarovich, the ruler of the gothic horror Domain of Dread known as Barovia.
The news, however, is also somewhat bittersweet as the Deadline article also reported that the Forgotten Realms TV show first announced by Netflix in February 2025 and being spearheaded by Shawn Levy is no longer in development.
Below, we take a closer look at everything we know so far as Ravenloft potentially makes its way through the Mists and onto the small screen.
What is the new Ravenloft D&D TV series about?
So far, few details have been revealed about what the show will be about. In the Deadline article, the Ravenloft show is described as “a prestige fantasy series where adventure collides with gothic horror and tragic romance.” It also notes that: “At its heart, the series follows the making of the vampire Darklord Strahd von Zarovich, whose story of power, love, obsession, and undead transformation charts his origins from tragic antihero to one of Dungeons & Dragons’ most notorious villains.”
This, of course, isn’t an entirely new story as Strahd’s origins have been well documented in multiple D&D supplements, including the original 1983 I6: Ravenloft module, the 2014 Curse of Strahd campaign and more recently the 2026 Ravenloft: The Horrors Within supplement. It’s also the subject of the 1993 novel I, Strahd by author P.N. Elrod, which fully details his transformation from tormented noble to bloodsucking monster.
It’s not clear, however, if the Netflix Ravenloft TV series will be drawing on any of this existing material or going in an entirely new direction.
Who is working on the new Ravenloft D&D TV series?
The show will be written and produced by John August, the American screenwriter, director and novelist best known as a frequent collaborator of Tim Burton and writer of movies including Big Fish, Corpse Bride, Dark Shadows and Frankenweenie.
The show will also be produced by Academy Award-winning Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón, who is best known for directing Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the dystopian sci-fi film Children of Men and the space thriller Gravity.
Hasbro Entertainment and Wizards of the Coast will also be directly involved in the production.
When will the series be coming out?
No official release date has been announced. In fact, it’s possible (and even likely) that the Ravenloft TV show may never see the light of day. If so, it joins a long line of recently scrapped D&D series that includes a proposed Dragonlance TV series from actor and producer Joe Manganiello, a live action D&D series from Paramount+ and the recently cancelled Forgotten Realms show.
In fact, it’s worth noting that while Hollywood has been attempting to bring D&D to the small screen for decades, the last time an official Dungeons & Dragons TV show actually aired was the 1983 CBS cartoon series. And while there’s reason to be hopeful, given recent projects like the Honor Among Thieves film and the D&D episode of the Amazon Secret Level TV series, the track record isn’t exactly stellar.
Final Thoughts
While it’s disappointing to hear that Netflix’s Forgotten Realms TV series appears to have ended up in the Nine Hells of development, it is encouraging to learn that we may see a Ravenloft show in the not too distant future. There’s also reason to be hopeful given that a Baldur’s Gate TV show is reportedly in development on HBO from Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin.
We’ll be keeping a close eye on this story in the days ahead and will update this page with more information as it becomes available.
More D&D Film & Television Coverage
For more from the world of Wizards of the Coast, visit our D&D Movies & TV Shows page.
Subscribe to D&D Fanatics
Get exclusive D&D news, reviews and rules updates delivered right to your inbox.
Jason Volk is the Publisher of Dungeons & Dragons Fanatics and lives in the wilds of Western Canada. He has been playing D&D for over 25 years and is a huge fan of Dragonlance and the Forgotten Realms. His favorite character of all time was a Necromancer named Neek who spent most of his adventuring career resurrecting the corpses of slain monsters. When he’s not playing TTRPGs, Jason enjoys video games, Magic: The Gathering, Warhammer 40K, watching football and spending time with his wife and adorably nerdy children.
Follow him on Bluesky or on Instagram
