It was Miss Scarlet, in the cinema...

Lesley Ann Warren turns 80 today, and what better way to celebrate than by tracing her most iconic role through the curious subgenre of board game adaptations? Warren's Miss Scarlet in Clue (1985) remains a masterclass in comedic timing and sly seduction, anchoring a film that turned a simple murder mystery game into a riotous, multi-ending farce. But Clue is just the beginning of a strange and wonderful lineage, where filmmakers have tried to squeeze cinematic drama from the abstract mechanics of rolling dice, moving tokens, and calling out coordinates.

This chain is not about the obvious blockbusters alone. It is a journey through the highs and lows, the clever and the clumsy, of translating games into stories. From the jungle peril of Jumanji to the naval spectacle of Battleship, each film takes a different approach: some embrace the game's structure, others use it as a springboard for pure spectacle. Along the way, we'll encounter forgotten gems like Clue's spiritual cousin Murder by Death (though not a board game adaptation, it shares the same playful spirit), and the underrated Ouija (2014), which turns a ouija board into a horror device.

The through-line is the challenge of adaptation: how do you make a story out of a game that has no story? The answer, as these films show, is to find the human drama hidden in the rules. In Clue, the game's multiple solutions become a narrative device. In Jumanji, the game's escalating dangers become a metaphor for childhood fears. In Battleship, the game's grid-based combat becomes a global alien invasion. Each film is a testament to the creative leaps required to turn a pastime into a picture.

So join me in raising a glass to Lesley Ann Warren, and to the filmmakers who dared to roll the dice. This chain is a celebration of the weird, wonderful world where board games meet cinema, and it might just make you want to dust off your old game night favourites.