Critical Role Production Company Acquires Sci-Fi Narrative Podcast Series ‘Midst’

The adventure begins…anew!

Metapigeon, the development and production company of the multimedia giant Critical Role, announced today that it has acquired the narrative podcast Midst: a semi-improvised audio drama. The news marks Critical Role’s first major step in developing new IP and comes on the heels of the recent announcement that Amazon Studios has secured a multiyear exclusive TV and first-look film deal with the company.

“As part of our ongoing effort to expand the types of narratives we share and elevate new storytellers, we remain focused on exploring diverse IP in a multitude of mediums,” Ben Van Der Fluit, Critical Role’s SVP of Business and Content Development, said in a statement. “Working with the narrators of Midst has been a dream—we’re such fans of the world they have built, and we look forward to continuing to empower their creative dreams.”

“In lieu of the trumpet and explosion emojis that would be the truest expression of our feelings, we can say with full sincerity that we are over the moon to have found partners with such phenomenal passion and talent for creative multimedia storytelling,” added the podcast’s founders. “Critical Role and Metapigeon are enabling us to bring Midst to life in ways we never imagined possible, and we can’t wait to share what’s in store with fans both old and new.”

Presented as an ongoing fiction podcast series, Midst relies on three unreliable narrators (known as a production studio called “Third Person”) who voice action, perform characters, build out lore and effects, and break the fourth wall with all-original music and creative sound design—all which help to curate a unique audio experience. Each episode also features a piece of original art from notable artists, including Ricardo Bessa, Lap Pun Cheung, Will Kirkby, and more. Season 3 of Midst is currently in progress.

As part of the acquisition, the first two seasons of the show will be released under Critical Role and Metapigeon featuring remastered audio as well as a new video version, with the first three episodes of the series set to be released for free April 11, 12, and 13 on Critical Role’s YouTube channel. (Future episodes will be released weekly at 5am PT). Each episode will have unique animated artwork and also be available in podcast format. Subscribers will have the chance to access the first five episodes on April 11 and future episodes two weeks in advance, available on the Midst website, as well as bonus content like documents and artifacts to enhance the world of the story.

Since debuting as a web-based tabletop roleplay game among friends in 2015, Critical Role has become one of the industry’s biggest independent media companies. Over the years, the organization — comprised of and founded by award-winning voice actors Liam O’Brien, Laura Bailey, Ashley Johnson, Travis Willingham, Sam Riegel, Marisha Ray, Taliesin Jaffe, and Matthew Mercer — has expanded its reach and popularity with (among other things) graphic novels, nonfiction books, podcasts, live events, a non-profit foundation (Critical Role Foundation) and a tabletop game publishing company (Darrington Press).

In 2022, following an immensely successful Kickstarter, Critical Role launched the first season of its critically acclaimed adult animation series The Legend of Vox Machina on Prime Video. The show, which recently finished its second season, has already garnered a third season renewal, and a new series based on Critical Role’s second popular campaign, The Mighty Nein, is set to begin production shortly.