Showrunner Tasha Huo talks about Critical Role’s The Mighty Nein’s animated journey, deep drama, D&D mechanics, and those 44-minute episodes.
The phenomenon that is Critical Role is set to expand its animated universe on November 19th with the highly anticipated new series, The Mighty Nein. Following the massive success of The Legend of Vox Machina, this new chapter on Prime Video adapts the beloved second campaign of the actual play Dungeons & Dragons web series.
The story introduces a new band of misfits – fugitives and outcasts bound by secrets and scars – who must band together to save their realm. Mama’s Geeky sat down with showrunner Tasha Huo at New York Comic-Con 2025 to discuss the long journey to the screen, the show’s deeper, more dramatic tone, and the joy of translating Critical Role’s magic for a new medium.
Tasha Huo Is A Critical Role Fan Herself & Cannot Wait For Everyone To See The Mighty Nein
Mama’s Geeky: How excited are you for fans to see The Mighty Nein?
Tasha Huo: I can’t even handle it, to be honest, because I’m such a fan of the original live show. I just feel like everyone’s going to lose their minds, because I lose my mind every time I see it. It’s so exciting. So exciting to finally see all these characters we fell in love with for years, finally moving around in the same place together. It’s bonkers.
Mama’s Geeky: What was it like to be in the room during the NYCC Critical Role panel and hear the fan reactions?
Tasha Huo: It’s so great to see just people really excited and just popping at all the things, you know, like Jester being Jester. And again, like finally seeing, you know, Caleb and Nott together for the first time, just relationships that we all loved. I think everyone, including myself, just like losing our minds over getting to see it actually be real, finally.
Mama’s Geeky: I know animation takes a long time. How long a process has this been for you?
Tasha Huo: It’s been, it’s been years. Gosh, so many years. I think it’s like, it’s been like three years since I like started. I started talking to them about the project and, you know, sitting in a room with Critical Role and saying, “Okay, let’s talk about your characters and let’s talk about things that maybe didn’t make it into the campaign that you really loved, or this one moment that I really remember.” And as a fan, I think we all will, you know, “What were you really feeling at the table that time?” So, you know, kind of, those were our initial conversations and that was probably about three years ago.
Capturing Critical Role’s Undeniable Chemistry
Mama’s Geeky: What was your reaction when you first saw everything come together in the first finished clip?
Tasha Huo: Honestly, the first moment I saw them all in the record studio, getting to do scenes together was sort of like the bigger moment, because A, it was like we were back at the table. And that was just really awesome because it’s been so many years since we got to see that. But B, just, you could see the joy of them being able to step back into their characters after so long. And they just fell right into it. And like the chemistry was there. They were able to play off each other. Because oftentimes, you know, you record someone and it’s just one person and they have to act against nothing. But because we get the joy, the specialness of all of them being able to be in the same room. It’s just like watching the show in front of you. And, you know, some of the ad-libbing was fantastic. We kept a lot of that too. So yeah, I mean, that was really sort of the big aha moment of like, “Oh my God, we’re doing this.” But then, yeah, when you see them all on screen and they’re fully realized and they’re walking towards the camera and these epic slow-mo poses, like all of that shit is the best. It’s amazing.
Mama’s Geeky: I can imagine how unhinged it must be to be with all of them at once.
Tasha Huo: It’s a dream. They’re all fantastic human beings. They’re so generous and kind and the biggest nerds. It’s the best, it’s the best. Because we all fall in love with them, you know, from across the screen and they are as lovely as we want them to be and hope that they are. So yeah, it’s just, it’s great, it’s great.
Working With Exciting Guest Stars LIke Lucy Liu
Mama’s Geeky: Obviously they teased some big-name guest stars that will be a part of the series, which is super exciting. I know you can’t really talk about it, but Travis did confirm that Lucy Liu is voicing the Bright Queen. Can you talk about working with her?
Tasha Huo: I mean, come on, she’s incredible. She is fantastic. And I think he used the word powerhouse and that’s absolutely right. I mean, she gets in there and she’s like such a little, little small thing, but she brings a power in it that you’re like, that’s exactly who you want for the Bright Queen. You know, she’s someone who in the campaign, I think was always seen as extremely terrifying and brilliant. And she brings a nuance to that role that you can see how intelligent she is, but also how fierce, she’s Lucy Liu. She just manages that balance. So yeah, she was great.
Mama’s Geeky: I love that these episodes are going to be 44 minutes in length. Can you talk about what liberties that gives you?
Tasha Huo: Yeah. I mean, we always wanted it to be a show that really delved into these characters’ histories and their past and the trauma that built them and really tell more of a dramatic story, a more adult story. And 44 minutes allows us to have quieter moments. And I think we’re going to find a lot more of that in Mighty Nein than we did in Vox Machina, which is just like sort of wall to wall, just a ride, right? And I think we’re a different kind of roller coaster in the Mighty Nein. There’s a lot of ups and there’s a lot of downs. We have the privilege of being able to sit with people when they’re really, really emotional in their lowest points, instead of having to gloss over it. So that’s going to be really exciting. Everyone is going to cry so hard.
Adapting D&D For The Screen
Mama’s Geeky: As a player and as a DM, how fun is it for you to adapt gameplay?
Tasha Huo: It’s so great. It’s so great because, you know, I hope that when you watch the show and you have played D&D, if you’ve ever played D&D, it’ll be an amazing show. But if you play D&D, you’ll be like, “Oh, that’s that spell.” Or, “Oh, that’s like, they rolled this way.” Or, “Oh yeah, bards can’t do that. They can only do this,” or whatever the case is. You know, rogue can’t do this or can’t do that. So there’s a lot of D&D mechanics sort of baked into it. But if you are a D&D nerd, you’re going to see all of that stuff, which is really great. Like, you know, Caleb’s magic, which we saw on the trailer. You know, it’s very meticulous kind of magic because he’s a wizard. And of course the way that they play components are very important. When I DM, no one wants to play with components. So we just skip that part. But these are more intense nerds. So they, you know, deal with components. And so that becomes a big part of Caleb’s magic. And so you’ll see those D&D things inside the show, which is cool.
Mama’s Geeky: Can you talk about working to cut a trailer? I am always curious about who makes the decisions on what to include.
Tasha Huo: Everyone who put that trailer together is genius and amazing. And I sort of sit back and watch cuts come in and say, “Eh, like maybe we can, don’t forget this shot.” Or like, “This is a really great shot, use this.” But you know, they’re pretty much doing their genius thing. You know, they watch the show and everyone who works on it are fans of the show. So they’re able to, you know, come at it with different perspectives. If I cut it together, it would be very different. It’s probably not good at all because I’m in love with different things, you know? So yeah, it’s super cool to just like see it come back to you one day in your email box and be like, “Holy shit.” Yeah, we did it. People are gonna flip.
Adapting Beloved Projects For The Screen
Mama’s Geeky: You’re no stranger to this. You’ve been doing animation stuff for a while, including Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft, recently. How did that help you, and what have you done differently with this show than with others in the past?
Tasha Huo: Well, Tomb Raider was also 22 minutes. So it is more like the luxury of like, “Oh, like we can have emotions here.” We don’t have to just sort of like move past them really quickly. You know, something I learned, I think, was sort of the economy of storytelling. Both of those have like really big worlds, really big lore. And you have to figure out how to adapt that for the format. But still bring the audience through that amazing experience you had when you played that game or you watched the live show. You’re really thinking about the audience’s experience as you’re writing it. Because you want to share your love of the thing. And so you want to make sure that they’re feeling it the same way that you did, but that you’re also telling a tight story that still fits in 22 minutes or 44 minutes, which is, it’s the job. It’s the tough part of the writing.
Mama’s Geeky: How many episodes is The Mighty Nein?
Tasha Huo: Eight episodes per season.
Mama’s Geeky: Is it one episode per week?
Tasha Huo: Three at launch, and then one per week.
Tasha Huo’s passion for the original campaign and her commitment to a deeper, more dramatic narrative promise an epic journey for The Mighty Nein fans, both new and old. Be sure to tune in for the three-episode premiere of The Mighty Nein on November 19th!
