‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Director Reveals Origin of That Huge Cameo

The following post contains SPOILERS for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.

The new Dungeons & Dragons is not lacking in the star power department: It’s got Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Justice Smith, Regé-Jean Page, and Hugh Grant, all in key billed roles. But if you’ve seen the film, you know it also has a huge star who pops up briefly in an unnannounced cameo role.

That’s Bradley Cooper, who shows up out of nowhere for one scene as Marlamin, the former love of Holga, Michelle Rodriguez’s character. As for how the film got such a big name for such a small role, co-director John Francis Daley explained in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. It turns out he and Cooper have a long history together…

I co-starred with Bradley [Cooper] on the show Kitchen Confidential when I was 19 years old, and we appreciated each other’s careers from afar after that experience. And so when this opportunity came up, we knew we wanted someone to inhabit the role that brought with it this sense of gravitas and just full-on acting chops. So I don’t remember who it was that pitched Bradley, but the second I heard the name, I thought, “Oh, let’s go for it.” So we sent him a copy of the unfinished film and he loved it. So he was ready to jump on board, and it was such an awesome day.

READ MORE: Our Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Review

Okay, but how did Daley get the gelatinous cube in the new movie? I heard that guy swore off doing Hollywood films forever after his terrible experience on the first Dungeons & Dragons back in 2000. To me, that was the biggest casting coup of them all.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is now playing in theaters everywhere.