How The Legend of Vox Machina will honor the late Lance Reddick in season 3

Last year, actor Lance Reddick — famous for his roles in the John Wick movies, on The Wire, and much more — died suddenly of heart disease, cutting short a vibrant career. One of this last roles will be as the voice of the villainous dragon Thordak in the upcoming third season of The Legend of Vox Machina, based on the Dungeons & Dragons adventures from Critical Role, and the show has plans to honor him.

"I think after the first episode of the season, there's an 'In Memorium' card for him," star Sam Riegel (Scanlan) told Radio Times. "But it was such a sudden passing, we didn't have a chance to really say goodbye or anything. We've been in touch with his family, and his wife was very gracious and wanted to make sure his voice stayed in the show, and we were happy that it did and it could. It was an honor to work with him, for sure. I'm glad this was one of the last things that he got to do."

On Vox Machina, Thordak is one of the dragons making up the Chroma Conclave, a group of tyrannical fire-breathers our heroes — a lovable group of adventures called Vox Machina — are determined to fell. Reddick has a history of playing larger-than-life figures like Thordak. He also voices famous villain Lex Luthor in Kite Man: Hell Yeah! and even played Greek god of thunder Zeus in Percy Jackson and the Olympians. You hear that voice, you just think it's got to belong to someone powerful.

Grief is "a theme" in The Legend of Vox Machina season 3

Matthew Mercer, another Vox Machina cast member and producer, also weighed in on losing Reddick. "We've been a fan of his for so long, and getting him to be part of the series meant so much, and I had the pleasure of meeting him in person, finally, just a short time before he passed, and it kind of hit us all real hard," Mercer said. "Talking about grief as a theme this season, there is a part of that subtle real-life grief. We keep wanting to make this as awesome as it can be as part of that memory, and for what he brought to one of my favorite villainous, larger-than-life characters."

"He brought such a delicious subtlety to it at times, as well as power and terrifying strength. He really elevated Thordak to a level I couldn't expect, and I'm just so grateful that we had the opportunity to do that together."

The Legend of Vox Machina season 3 premieres on Prime Video this Thursday, October 3. While this is one of Reddick's final roles, he still has other things coming out; for instance, he'll appear in the John Wick spinoff movie Ballerina next year.

The Legend of Vox Machina dabbles in a variety of tones, swinging from light comedy to action to angsty drama one after the other after the other. Hearing Reddick's rich tones one last time will add a layer of melancholy to it. We really have lost a great performer in him, but I'm glad we get to see him work a few more times. This new season of Vox Machina will bring the Chroma Conclave arc to an end. Amazon hasn't greenlit a fourth season yet, although there will be a new animated series based on The Mighty Nein, another Critical Role adventure.

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