Baldur’s Gate 3 voice actor Neil Newbon urges fans to believe in HBO in making the live action adaptation of the series

The game Baldur’s Gate 3, which was released in 2023, is not going to be followed by another game, but a show. HBO recently announced that a show which will be the continuation of Baldur’s Gate 3 is in development and will be created, written, and executive produced by Craig Mazin, who is also behind The Last of Us. While The Witcher was widely loved until Henry Cavill's exit from the project, and Season 1 of The Last of Us was also a success, not all adaptations of games have recieved a lot of love from fans.

Season 2 of The Last of Us recieved criticism after Joel was killed off in the second episode, and because many did not like Bella Ramsey's portrayal of an adult Ellie. Fans have also not reacted very positively to the first look at Prime Video's God of War, which is currently under production. Baldur's Gate 3 might suffer the same fate because it is a show that is continuing the story, and not game. Voice actor Neil Newbon, who voiced Astarion has urged fans to believe in HBO and it's live-action adaptation of Baldur’s Gate 3.

Neil Newbon on the Baldur’s Gate 3 adaptation

There is often quite some difference between a gamer who is watching a live-action adaptation of a game he has enjoyed playing and a viewer who has never played the game watching the same adaptation. A fan who has played the game has a pre-concieved notion about how the adaptation should be, and that notion might not always match the reality. However, that doesn't mean that studios shouldn't be given the opportunity and fair chance to try their best to make a good adaptation.

Neil Newbon, who voiced Astarion in the game, Baldur's Gate 3 has tried to say exactly that when he tried to urge fans to believe in HBO in making the live action adaptation. Speaking with FRVR about the upcoming Baldur’s Gate 3 adaptation, Newborn said:

“I really hope people give them space to make the show that they want to make."

He continue:

“It’s really important that artistic endeavours are left to cook. What they’ll do with it, who knows? But he’s [showrunner Craig Mazin] an amazing writer. I think he’s a great showrunner as well. I think Chernobyl is a great example of how good his writing is, man.”

Newbon also assuringly said:

“if they do it right, then I think it’ll be a fantastic TV series.."

and added:

“Let them cook, man. Let them do their thing and enjoy it."

Newbon then pointed out a very important fact regarding how many times fans or individuals in general get worried or start having opinions about something that is yet to happen. In the context of Baldur's Gate 3, he said:

“I think the worry about the internet at the moment, sometimes, is that people really pile on a lot, and they really get worried and upset. And I understand that comes from a place of love, often they’re very worried about things, but nothing’s happened yet, you know what I mean?”

He pointed out to Baldur’s Gate 3 fans saying:

“it’s healthier to watch the thing and then have a reaction to it."

and added:

“sometimes people get very affected by stuff they don’t know."

Newbon went a step further to explain in detail why all adaptations cannot adapt every single detail of a game or a book. While one can try to be as loyal to the source material as possible, it cannot all be exactly accurate, and that's just how it is. Urging Baldur’s Gate 3 fans, Newbon said:

“It doesn’t work like that. Unless you’re filming a theatre piece, you can’t do a one-to-one from theatre to film, we’ve seen that. You know, Les Misérables, Dangerous Liaisons, is a good example—that was a theatre piece, it went into film, both are equally good. They can all be good… but they’re different mediums.”

Newbon explained:

“TV, film, theatre, most theatre (some theatre is actually promenade) but most of that is passive medium viewing the vision of the director. Games are active. You are involved directly in the story. It’s a completely different medium. And I think people should understand that, I think, I hope they do, that’s it’s a different thing.”

Finally, he concluded by emphasizing on the fact that an adaptation cannot just be seen as just that. Even if it is a game getting adapted into a show, it is still a show, and that has its own format, limits and capibilities that need to be understood and respected. Trying to pass on that message to Baldur’s Gate 3 fans, he said:

“That’s why it has to be treated in a different way."

He continued:

“You have to see that this is the vision of people of the best story they can do with the material that they have. This is a game, and if you take a film that goes into a game adaptation, same thing, right? For a long time, it was not easy to translate because people would try to translate the film into a game as opposed to making the game itself.”

There's no release date or cast details available about Baldur’s Gate 3. Other than Mazin, Baldur’s Gate 3 will be executive produced by Jacqueline Lesko, Cecil O’Connor, and Gabriel Marano. Chris Perkins, who used to be Wizards of the Coast's Head of Story, will be a consultant for the show. Wizards of the Coast own the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) intellectual property, and are thus the licensor for the game Baldur’s Gate 3 since it has a D&D format. Hashbro Entertainment is also behind the project.

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