Disney has targeted Robin Hood as the latest of its animated classics to get the remake treatment.
Carlos Lopez Estrada, perhaps best known for directing the 2018 crime movie Blindspotting, is on board to helm the project, which is being written by Kari Granlund. Granlund already is in the Disney fold after having written the studio’s recent remake of Lady and the Tramp.
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Justin Springer, who counts the studio’s Dumbo and Tron Legacy among his credits, is producing the feature being developed for the studio’s Disney+ streaming service.
Robin Hood was a comedic and musical take on the famous tale, with anthropomorphic animals inhabiting the roles of the characters made famous over the centuries. Hood was a fox; Little John, a bear; Friar Tuck, a badger; Prince John, a thumb-sucking lion; the sheriff of Nottingham, a wolf; and Maid Marian, a vixen.
The movie has seen its critical appraisal rise, fall and rise again over the years, although its influence seems long-lasting. One of the songs, "Love," was nominated for an Oscar, while another, "Oo De Lally," is well known.
The new take is said to be a musical and again will feature the characters as anthropomorphic, this time in a live-action/CG hybrid format.
The deals were inked before Hollywood’s lockdown. The project is in early development.
Granlund co-wrote the script for Godmothered, a Disney+ feature starring Jillian Bell and Isla Fisher that recently wrapped and is now in post-production.
In addition to Blindspotting, which starred Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs, Estrada directed an episode of Legion, FX’s trippy thriller based on a Marvel Comics character, and wrapped Summertime, a drama featuring teen poets from various Los Angeles neighborhoods. The drama debuted at Sundance. Estrada also is working on a theatrical feature for Walt Disney Animation.
Estrada is repped by UTA and Ziffren Brittenham. Granlund is repped by Verve and Industry Entertainment.
