Dungeon Crawler Carl TV Series Moves Forward in Development

Last April, it was announced that the LitRPG series Dungeon Crawler Carl, crafted by Matt Dinniman, is set to make its way to the screen with a TV adaptation on Peacock. The show will be produced by Seth MacFarlane and written by Chris Yost. Recently, it was confirmed that Peacock has opted for a straight-to-series order, which means the series will skip the pilot phase and head directly into production.

Such straight-to-series orders are rare and indicate a network’s strong confidence in a project. Notable past examples include House of Cards and Orange Is the New Black for Netflix, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power for Prime Video, and House of the Dragon for HBO.

This development suggests that Dinniman’s franchise could be poised to become a significant player in the entertainment landscape. What began as a self-published work has expanded into an eight-book series and a burgeoning media empire that features toys, a tabletop RPG, a card game, and graphic novels. The narrative draws heavily from classic tabletop RPG and dungeon-crawler video game elements, following Carl, a Coast Guard veteran, as he navigates a perilous survival game alongside his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, all for the amusement of alien spectators.

Fuzzy Door, MacFarlane’s production company, will be at the helm of the show. Yost will serve as an executive producer alongside MacFarlane, Erica Huggins, and Rachel Hargreaves-Heald. Dinniman hinted at more exciting updates coming soon and encouraged fans to stay tuned for San Diego Comic-Con, where he and MacFarlane will host a panel.