Just to recap, so far this week we’ve heard news that Uncle Buck, In The Heat Of The Night and Say Anything have been earmarked for TV treatment. While Say Anything has already been canned due to original director-writer Cameron Crowe’s vocal disapproval of the project, there’s still a clear trend emerging. And that’s not taking into account other titles announced in recent months; Real Genius, Minority Report and Rush Hour. With TV networks increasingly turning to film for inspiration (caused by a lack thereof), today we can add another title to the list, as Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs is now destined for the small screen.
Sony Pictures Animation have joined forces with DHX Media in developing a spinoff TV series of the successful animated franchise. Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs: The Series will contain 26 22-minute episodes that are set to follow the basic premise of the movies. Based on the book by Judi and Ron Barrett, the two features were released in 2009 and 2013 by Sony, and went on to gross $510 million in theatres. The storylines followed the experiences of wacky inventor, Flint Lockwood, who creates a device to ensure no-one suffers from hunger ever again. The show will serve as a prequel of sorts, harking back to Lockwood’s high school days and the shenanigans he caused during his teenage years.
DXH Media president and COO Steven DeNure said in the announcement (via EW):
“Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs has a tremendous legacy as beloved children’s books and a duo of highly popular feature films, showing how great ideas can succeed across media. We believe audiences both old and new are going to love this fiercely funny franchise re-imagined for the small screen.”
EW went on to reveal that “In addition to Lockwood, expect many familiar faces from the film like new school reporter Sam Sparks, Flint’s father Tim, Steve the Monkey, and sardine model Brent McHale.” Considering this project sounds like a duplication of the earlier movies, split into a series, how it will be re-imagined is anyone’s guess. Regardless, this is another notch tacked onto the demise of creativity, in a movement that’s showing no signs of slowing down.
Should Sony be re-appropriating Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs for small screen success? Sound off below!