The news that there’s going to be a gender swapped “Splash” remake from Disney Studios (Channing Tatum as the merman and Jillian Bell as the girl who is saved by a merman) got me to thinking – just how many Disney movies are in production?! You can likely thank Kenneth Branagh’s “Cinderella” (2015) and Jon Favreau’s “The Jungle Book”, which came out in April 2016, as the beginning of these live action adaptations of animated material.
These films will be coming out whether you like it or not.
“Beauty and the Beast”
Emma Watson (“Harry Potter” franchise) and Dan Stevens (“Downton Abbey”, “The Visitor”) star in this live action adaptation of the 1991 animated film which was the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. This take has Bill Condon (“Gods and Monsters”, “Chicago”, “Twilight”) in the director’s chair. I remain hopeful. Luke Evans is playing Gaston!
Check out the teaser trailer! Release Date: March 17, 2017
“Dumbo”
Yup, the 1941 animated film is getting the live action treatment with Tim Burton being courted to direct. The only other thing we really know is that the screenwriter is Ehren Kruger (“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”, “Reindeer Games”). Alas, I don’t remain very hopeful for this. I mean, when was the last time Tim Burton made a really ‘good’ movie? Hopefully this idea goes back on the shelves…permanently.
“Splash”
As mentioned above, this will star Channing Tatum and Jillian Bell (“22 Jump Street”, “Workaholics”). The 1984 original had Daryl Hannah as the mermaid who saved Tom Hanks’ character when they were children. The original was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards. Although this remake will unlikely garner any awards, it still looks like a fun, goofy take on the material. And since both were in “22 Jump Street”, I imagine the ‘tone’ will be similar (maybe I’m hoping).
I should note that the original “Splash” was the first Disney film (under the Touchstone Pictures banner) which aimed at a more mature audience. Touchstone serves as a brand for Walt Disney and not an actual business operation.
“Tinker Bell”
The popular fairy from the “Peter Pan” universe is looking to get her own live action film! Did you know that there’s been six Tinker Bell animated movies since 2008? In fact, Reese Witherspoon was announced late last year to play the titular character. There hasn’t been much released on this project but we do know that Witherspoon is set to also produce and the film is set to be called “Tink”.
Meh, I guess it could be worse. We could get a remake of “Hook”.
“Bangarang Rufio!!!”
“Cruella De Vil”
Yes, the fun villain from the “101 Dalmatians” films will be getting her own film a lot like Maleficent got her own film recently with Angelina Jolie. Anyways, the actress that is in early stages to take on a young version of De Vil is Emma Stone! Surprisingly, I think she’ll own the role. Stone is a supremely talented actress that we are just now seeing come into her own. Not much is known yet regarding script or directors.
“Maleficent 2”
The reluctant anti-hero of Maleficent returns! Well, in this newer iteration of the character that first became known as the evil queen in “Sleeping Beauty”. Angelina Jolie was also confirmed to reprise her role. The original screenwriter (Linda Woolverton) will return but no plot details or a release date has been set. The first film made over $200 million in the US alone. It shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise to have this sequel happen.
“Jungle Book 2”
The Favreau directed film (that was just released in April) has already been announced to get a sequel. The box office for the first film almost made $1 billion worldwide! That’s nuts! Don’t expect these live action remakes to go away any time soon!
“Mary Poppins” sequel
Emily Blunt is set to play the titular character in the Rob Marshall (“Chicago”, “Into the Woods”) directed musical movie (with Lin Manuel Miranda costarring). Actually, even the original stars – Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke (original Poppins and Bert) have been confirmed to appear in the film as well!
Release Date: Christmas 2018
Personally, I’m excited to see Gaston on the screen again. He was the best part of the “Beauty and the Beast” animated movie. He’s pompous and interesting. I believe the same logic is used with Prince Humperdinck in “The Princess Bride”. To be sure of this will be the tone that the studio is trying to create. I am hoping for a light, corky and fun take on the source material. They better not make it needlessly dark. It’s best to look at the tone for the upcoming “Cinderella” as indicative of what else is to come.
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