Live action Woody Woodpecker movie coming

[gaastra]

First chipmunks,then yogi, then smurfs, now woody woodpecker!

http://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film ... ecker.html

[EricJ]

It's now an INDUSTRY to put an Alvin-esque "Baby-Boomer CGI pop cartoon icon hybrid that paying parents know and no kid has ever heard of" entry on Christmas Day, as traditional as holly and plum pudding.
They're not made for audiences, they're made for a release date. No other reason for their existence.

(We told Sony they should have saved the Smurfs for Christmas, and saved the bother of having to come up with another one...)

[droosan]

First chipmunks,then yogi, then smurfs, now woody woodpecker!

If I had to trace the modern TV/short cartoon-to-film remake trend to a 'first' .. I'd probably say the 1994 The Flintstones movie (I could also choose the 1980 Popeye film, since it came much earlier -- but that one wasn't immediately followed-up by similar projects).

Of course, since the mid-1990s, we've also seen Rocky & Bullwinkle, Dudley Do-Right, George of the Jungle, Mr. Magoo, Garfield, Scooby Doo, UnderDog, Marmaduke, The Magic Roundabout (Doogal), AstroBoy, Speed Racer and several others get this treatment.

Plus the Looney Tunes gang, with Space Jam and Looney Tunes: Back In Action.

Currently in-development is a Mr. Peabody & Sherman film and a CGI Popeye movie (full circle?) .. and I'm certain many other titles are in various planning stages.


---------------

Oh, and EricJ: Woody Woodpecker is a Universal Studios property; always has been. This new film is being handled by their animation partner Illumination Studios (Despicable Me, The Lorax), not by Sony.

[EricJ]

If I had to trace the modern TV/short cartoon-to-film remake trend to a 'first' .. I'd probably say the 1994 The Flintstones movie (I could also choose the 1980 Popeye film, since it came much earlier -- but that one wasn't immediately followed-up by similar projects).

Back as far as the 80's, or even late 70's, H-B wanted to do live-action movies:
Flintstones and live-action Jetsons (looks like Robert Rodriguez has lost interest again) went through literally a dozen scripts each over twenty years, and looks like interest has cooled again on casting Dwayne Johnson as Race Bannon in that "Johnny Quest" movie that's still no nearer to production.
(They got the idea on reviving the project fresh after seeing him on the run with kids in "Race to Witch Mountain".)

Of course, since the mid-1990s, we've also seen Rocky & Bullwinkle, Dudley Do-Right, George of the Jungle, Mr. Magoo,

Notice anything in common with these projects?
Hint:

Classic Media. Who also own Underdog, Mr. Peabody, and My Favorite Martian.

AstroBoy, Speed Racer

Ah yes, the days when Hollywood suits wanted to get in on "this Anime thing the hip young kids were into", and showed how anime-literate they were that they remembered Astro Boy! And Speed Racer! And Gigantor! (Fox was that close...) And Kimba the White Lion!...Er, well, we know what happened to that one.

Plus the Looney Tunes gang, with Space Jam and Looney Tunes: Back In Action.

Space Jam started as a cash-in on the Michael Jordan/Bugs Bunny Nike ad (and you can tell where their loyalties lay )
LT:BIA started out as another Warner sports-marketing tie-in for the sequel--When Brendan Fraser jumps into a race car, that's all that's left of the original "Space Jam 2: NASCAR" pitch.

Oh, and EricJ: Woody Woodpecker is a Universal Studios property; always has been. This new film is being handled by their animation partner Illumination Studios (Despicable Me, The Lorax), not by Sony.

.
Oops, sorry, yes--Got studios confused there, but otherwise still applies: It's the only cartoon icon UNIVERSAL owns outright, to compete in the new industry, which would explain why they have Illumination on their leash
(Ie. they wanted to see a Woody movie for ownership rights, we don't.)

[droosan]

And Gigantor! (Fox was that close...)

That one did get the live-action treatment, in Japan, back in 2005:



It was cheesy, but fun-to-watch. Much like the original show.

[Randall]

I've been thinking of getting a copy of that one. Nice to hear you liked it.

.... just one-clicked an Amazon purchase. I love Amazon Marketplace.

[estefan]

It doesn't specifically state that it will be live-action. Could be a fully computer-animated film, for all we know, which I would prefer over a hybrid.

And, of course, there have been other big-budget anime attempts in recent years:

Dragon Evolution (which was terrible)
The Last Airbender (I have four episodes left of this series and then immediately afterwards, I'm watching the Shymalan film. But, this did prove to be a hit for Paramount, but I don't see them producing the sequel)
Akira (boy, they've been trying to get this off the ground for a while. I'm rather optimistic that it could be pulled off, though)