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The Mighty Nein forced Critical Role's Taliesin Jaffe to play Mollymauk Tealeaf differently than in Campaign 2
OG Critical Role star Jaffe knows what's ahead for fan-favorite teafling Mollymauk in Prime Video's newest Exandrian adaptation - unlike when he first started playing him in 2018

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Potential spoilers for The Mighty Nein follow.
The Critical Role team had one major advantage approaching the tales of The Mighty Nein a second time - they already knew what was going to happen. Yes, Prime Video's animated series adapts the much-beloved Campaign 2 of the massively popular TTRPG actual play series, and as such, has all the benefits of not having to figure the story out as it was going along. One cast member in particular approached his character in a different way for the Titmouse-animated series.
Namely, because he knew that character was going to die.
In case you don't know, I'm talking about Taliesin Jaffe, who plays tiefling Mollymauk Tealeaf in both the first season of Prime Video's Mighty Nein series and about the first 30 episodes of Critical Role's original Campaign 2. Speaking with Paste Magazine, Jaffe was asked what it was like to re-embody this version of his infamously deceased (and then sorta resurrected, it's complicated) mystical adeventurer.
"There was no inevitability the first time we did this," said Jaffe, who is currently playing as Bolaire Lathalia in CR's Campagn 4, "And knowing the inevitability, there is time to pace and start to talk about where this character is going and where they are."
"It was so nice," recounted the voice actor, "To not just have this one day where I’m like 'Oh, wait! No! Oh no… We’ll have to get back to that later!' So having the time and the space to really hit those moments and put in all these things and let him breathe in a way that sometimes a game doesn’t allow was really just so rewarding."
It's great to hear that the actor who originated Mollymauk is getting a new lease on the character in this second medium, but does that mean that Molly's death will hit any less hard? We'll just have to wait and see.
The Mighty Nein is streaming now on Prime Video.
From the lands of Exandria to your very own smartscreens, Popverse has everything you need to know about the TTRPG phenomenon that is Critical Role. Here you'll find:
- Popverse's Critical Role watch order
- An interview with GM Brennan Lee Mulligan
- The cast's appearance at C2E2 '25
...and more. Roll initiative, player. Adventure awaits.
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