Why Kira From D&D: Honor Among Thieves Looks So Familiar
Once upon a time, the best hope Dungeons & Dragons fans had a big budget Hollywood adaptation was 2000's "Dungeons & Dragons," a film that went through years of production stalls and ended up as a $35 million vehicle for a first time director. Worse, it only managed approximately $15 million at the box office — not exactly the sort of epic you expect to come from the expansive tabletop game. Oh, and Marlon Wayans was in that movie. And Jeremy Irons, but according to him, he had a castle to pay for, as he told The Guardian.
Now there's "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," an appropriately bigger adaptation from John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (screenwriters on "Spider-Man: Homecoming"). Both adaptations contain their fair share of magic and dragons, but the differences between the reactions are like night and day. "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" earned raves after debuting at the South by Southwest Festival, while the 2000 adaptation landed rotten ratings with critics and audiences, just one example of its near-universal dislike among the public.
The new film attracted a cast that includes major names like Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez. One of the youngest members of the cast is Chloe Coleman, portraying Kira. She doesn't have nearly the experience some of her co-stars do, but viewers would likely be surprised how many projects they recognize the 14-year-old actor from.
Her first big break was in Big Little Lies
There can be a little luck with any show, but you're making a pretty good gamble when you appear in a David E. Kelley series. This is the writer who brought the world everything from "Doogie Howser M.D." to "Boston Legal" to "Big Little Lies." Chloe Coleman was part of the massive ensemble for the latter series.
Coleman played Skye Carlson, the daughter of Nathan Carlson (James Tupper) and Bonnie Dalton (Zoe Kravitz), two of the more "normal" characters on "Big Little Lies." Though that becomes complicated once it's revealed that Bonnie is responsible for another character's death, killing Pery (Alexander Skarsgaard), the abusive husband of Celeste (Nicole Kidman).In the wake of this murder, Bonnie goes into a deep depression in "Big Little Lies" Season 2, feeling guilt for her crime as she pushes her husband and daughter away in the process.
Coleman described Kidman as a mentor during their time on set together, and that was fitting as her TV mom was a protector of sorts for Kidman's abused wife. "Nicole has done some incredible things and was a real mentor to me in 'Big Little Lies' and I really do love her," Coleman said in a 2020 interview with the Australian outlet Daily Telegraph (via Daily Mail). In the same interview, she said despite the dark material of the series, she spent some positive time with Kidman and her kids. Working on a David E. Kelley series is a big enough win, but walking away with an Academy Award winner as a mentor is the definition of a cherry on top.
She teamed up with Dave Bautista for My Spy
Chloe Coleman teamed up with Dave Bautista for the 2020 action-comedy "My Spy." The Amazon Prime release follows CIA agent JJ (Bautista) who is surveilling Sophie's (Coleman) family when she blows his cover, and the two become part of a long list of cinematic odd couples taking on the bad guys. In the film, 9-year-old Sophie is wise beyond her years (hence blowing JJ's cover), but also a tad lacking in friends, having recently moved from Paris to Chicago with her widowed mother. JJ is also rebounding from a botched mission in Ukraine at the start of the film, giving the pair the sort of cushy redemptive arc that makes these buddy movies popular.
"My Spy" is partly notable for being one of multiple features that found its theatrical window spoiled by the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to theater closures, the comedy was relegated to an Amazon Prime streaming release.
"My Spy" may have missed its chance at a theatrical release, but Amazon was satisfied enough that they quickly greenlit a sequel. Both Bautista and Coleman are returning for the follow-up, via Deadline. Bautista became something of a mentor and friend to Coleman, who told TooFab in a July 2020 interview that she was understandably nervous to meet Bautista.
"A lot of people don't know this, but it was my 10th birthday and I was spending it on set working. [Bautista] had the Guardians of Galaxy wish me a Happy Birthday over video. And I was like, I was so happy. It was like the best birthday gift ever. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world," the young actress said.
She was in Avatar: The Way of Water
Chloe Coleman was listed as part of the "Avatar: The Way of Water" cast all the way back in 2019, according to a Deadline report, and the movie wasn't released until three years later. The filming for the sequel began back in 2017, via The Hollywood Reporter. It's understandable for the massive production, but a pretty big leap in time for Coleman, having entered her teenage years before the movie hit theaters.
Coleman portrays the younger version of Lo'ak, the second Na'vi son of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), the protagonists of director James Cameron's 2009 "Avatar." Lo'ak is eager to fight when the world of Pandora is threatened again by pestering Earthlings, but he is kept under the watchful eye of his mother and father, along with his four siblings.
Coleman's role is brief as Britain Dalton takes over the role, but being part of one of the biggest franchises in the world overseen by one of the biggest directors in Hollywood history — all before you can legally purchase a beer — is certainly noteworthy.
Despite the gap between movies, "Avatar: The Way of Water" still managed to prove Cameron remains a box office draw, pulling in more than $2 billion worldwide. There are a total of five films planned in the "Avatar" franchise, so it's always possible Coleman could be called back, even if just for a flashback.
She appeared in 65 with Adam Driver
2023 marks a big year for Chloe Coleman. The young actress not only has "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" being added to her filmography, but she is also fresh off of James Cameron's "Avatar: The Way of Water." Additionally, she got to team up with "Evil Dead" director Sam Raimi through "65."
The science-fiction feature stars Adam Driver as an explorer named Mills who finds himself on a planet and finds he's in the middle of a "Jurassic Park" scenario with dinosaurs staring him down. The dinosaur reveal was spoiled in the trailers, something writers/directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods (screenwriters of "A Quiet Place") were not pleased with, as they told The Hollywood Reporter. Raimi was among the producers overseeing the film, a role he's served for other genre hits like "The Grudge" and "Don't Speak."
Coleman portrays Nevine, the daughter Driver's astronaut and the whole reason for his mission as he is seeking medical treatment to save her life. She appears at the start of the film and then through video footage, providing the heart for Driver's explorer to drive on in a world where is far from the top of the chain.