Drow ranger Drizzt Do'Urden is the most famous drow in the world, leading American writer R.A. Salvatore's Legend of Drizzt books. But there are many other well-known drow who could make a cameo in the new D&D TV show coming out on Netflix, and the likelihood is that the show will want to introduce original characters. Whether familiar or not, characters of this fantasy species would boost the show.

Dungeons & Dragons' Legend of Drizzt books launched in 1988 with The Crystal Shard, the first book in The Icewind Dale Trilogy, but Drizzt wasn't the main character until the next trilogy. This miniseries, The Dark Elf Trilogy, started bringing drow to a wider audience. Now over 30 million people have bought Salvatore's Drizzt books and drow like Minthara Baenre are a prominent feature of the Dungeons & Dragons Baldur's Gate video games. But never has one been seen in live-action - fans have been asking for it and may be about to get it.

Drow Present Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms With A Unique Challenge

Drow Are Harder To Adapt Than Elves In Dungeons & Dragons

The Dungeons & Dragons TV show should definitely target the inclusion of a drow or two, but it will face a unique challenge. Called The Forgotten Realms, the D&D show could be Stranger Things' replacement, with its pilot already written by Drew Crevello, who worked on the D&D-inspired Stranger Things. It is unknown which characters the pilot includes, but it will be set in the same campaign setting as the Elminster books, the Harpers books, and the extensive Legend of Drizzt. Live-action drow like Drizzt would be a world-first and possibly very expensive.

Also known as dark elves, drow are shorter than humans, requiring scaling throughout the live-action TV show, much the same as scaling was required of Hobbits in The Lord of the Rings. But most of the expense of adapting drow may come from nailing their skin tone, which is somewhere between ebony and purple, depending on the source consulted. Drow typically have white hair and pointed ears, which are easy for studios. But Dungeons & Dragons' ebony-purple drow skin could take hours of makeup, or even CGI to make convincingly.

Telling Drow Stories In The Underdark Allows Very Forgiving Lighting

Casting & Lighting Can Transform A Fantasy Character

Although weeks of makeup and post-production could be used to create the perfect drow, there are no-brainer shortcuts in Hollywood to ensuring excellent versions of fantasy species like this. Time is money, and both long hours in the makeup chair and extensive CGI can quickly raise a TV show's budget from safe to risky, with super-high budgets risking future adaptations if the show isn't renewed. Drow makeup may require ample highlight, shadow, a reflective base, and possibly holographic tones, but casting and lighting can eradicate many obstacles to the perfect fantasy skin.

The Forgotten Realms should take however long it needs on makeup, but the dim lighting of the Underdark is so forgiving, it could cut this down and cut CGI.

Good casting would alleviate the need for prosthetics that communicate the pointed, sharp beauty of drow elves, except the ears. Meanwhile, casting unknowns would be a major money saver, allowing Hasbro Entertainment budget to use on fantasy spells and fights. Gamora of Guardians of the Galaxy exemplifies how good makeup can transform an actor for the screen completely, but Zoe Saldaña sat in the chair for five hours a day (Allure). The Forgotten Realms should take however long it needs on makeup, but the dim lighting of the Underdark is so forgiving, it could cut this down and cut CGI.

The Underdark Is A Must For The Live-Action Dungeons & Dragons TV Show Anyway

The Forgotten Realms Should Explore The Subterranean Underdark

The Underdark is one of the things Netflix should include in its Dungeons & Dragons show to continue the story teased by Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. Xenk replaced Drizzt as Underdark guide to sidestep an online conversation at the time of script-writing about the possibility of problematic portrayals of species like drow. But the 2025 announcement of The Forgotten Realms confirms D&D's next shot at drow like Drizzt and the Underdark, where many live. Meanwhile, nuanced makeup, like selectively applied multichrome paint with a purple shift, should ensure drow look like drow, avoiding any problematic real-world parallels. ​​​​​​

Menzoberranzan and its culture are explored in The Dark Elf Trilogy.

The Underdark's appearance in Honor Among Thieves shouldn't be its last. The show could tackle the major drow city Menzoberranzan, the site of myriad Forgotten Realms stories and political intrigue to rival Game of Thrones. This could entail House Baenre, including Jarlaxle of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and Minthara of Baldur's Gate, or Drizzt Do'Urden and his scimitars. This would deliver on the original promise of Honor Among Thieves. But most importantly, the Underdark massively facilitates adapting drow. Clever lighting in underground darkness, representing multicolored faerie fire, could enable creative opportunities and dramatically reduce makeup and post-production CGI.

Drow Have A Huge Advantage Over Other Fantasy Species In Dungeons & Dragons

Drow Are Easier Than Many Fantasy Species To Make In Live-Action

Drow approximate humans closely in their physical appearance, making them far easier to adapt than more fantastical fantasy or sci-fi species. For example, Avatar's Na'vi and Guardians of the Galaxy's Gamora and Nebula required a lot more work than drow should. Gamora and Nebula required detailed facial prosthetics, while the Na'Vi required full CGI body doubles for actors, who worked with motion capture and facial capture technology to give life to their CGI counterparts. Most actors require wigs and lenses, as the drow will, so that's no reason not to dive into the drow species.

Drow have a purple skin tone in the animated Sleep Sound feature, narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch in 2021.

CGI is often applied in post-production to give fantasy people the correct sheen and perfect appearance. This can be done where needed in The Forgotten Realms, but heavy makeup can avoid a lot of this with drow, and smart lighting can avoid even more. This hardy race won't need the animatronics and visual effects required of druid transformations, owlbears, or beholders - as welcome as they are. Whichever characters feature in The Forgotten Realms, whether original or historical, drow would be a celebrated addition to the cast, and simple hacks can ensure that Dungeons & Dragons benefits.

Source: Allure