Laika Adds Jeremy Kipp Walker, Chaz Salembier To Live-Action Team

EXCLUSIVE: After winning the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for Women Talking, Sarah Polley is on to the most epic undertaking of her filmmaking career thus far, as Deadline understands that the filmmaker is in talks to helm a live-action take on Bambi in very early development at Disney.

“The Little Mermaid” is lighting up the box office and could follow in the footsteps of the photoreal CG-filled “The Lion King” and “The Jungle Book.” While those films were blockbusters, it has not been confirmed as to whether this seemingly less epic offering will be intended for theaters or, as we saw with “Pinocchio,” “Lady and the Tramp” and “Peter Pan and Wendy,” Disney+.Sarah Polley is coming off an Oscar win for Best Adapted Screenplay for the critically acclaimed “Women Talking,” which was her first directorial effort in over a decade following the autobiographical documentary “Stories We Tell.” Like Barry Jenkins boarding a prequel to “The Lion King” centered on Mufasa, this seems to be a case of a recent indie darling striking while the iron is hot.Time will tell as to whether “Bambi” will prove as heartbreaking as Polley’s “Away from Her” or “Take This Waltz,” but the child star-turned-acclaimed director seems an unusually appropriate fit for what is likely to be an emotional butt-kicker.An adaptation of Felix Salten’s 1923 novel, Disney’s animated “Bambi” is considered one of the early classics of the earliest era of Walt Disney’s animated output. “Bambi” was the fifth Walt Disney animated feature film, released by RKO Radio Pictures in 1942, and has earned $267 million worldwide over its original release and copious reissues.Polley joins a long line of esteemed auteurs choosing to play in the Walt Disney live-action remake sandbox, including Tim Burton (“Alice in Wonderland,” “Dumbo”), Kenneth Branagh (“Cinderella”), Niki Caro (“Mulan”), David Lowery (“Pete’s Dragon,” “Peter Pan & Wendy”) and Guy Ritchie (“Aladdin”) among others.

Still fresh off her Academy Award for Best Screenplay for 2022’s “Women Talking,” (which was also nominated for Best Picture), Canadian writer/director Sarah Polley may have found her next gig. However, it’ll be one that surprises and possibly shocks some.

Moana” a 2025 release date. The studio announced a lengthy string of release dates and announcements for their 2024-2031 slate on Tuesday, including the date for “Moana.”The film will open on June 27, 2025, which gives it a prime summer release date away from what could be a congested July 4th weekend.

Nico Parker is signing on to one of the biggest family movies coming to theaters. She’s one of the co-leads in the live action adaptation of “How To Train Your Dragon,” the beloved DreamWorks movie that resulted in two sequels. Who is Nico Parker? Thandiwe Newton’s 18-year-old daughter shines in ‘The Last of Us’Pedro Pascal is celebrating his birthday! His co-star Bella Ramsey shares BTS imagesA post shared by Nico Parker (@nicoparker)Parker will be playing Astrid, one of the film’s protagonists.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses major plot developments and surprises throughout “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” now playing in theaters. For months, the directors of “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” had been working exhaustively on a critical sequence that launches the movie’s second act. For the first time in his life, the animated film’s hero — Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), a.k.a. the Spider-Man of Earth-1610 — enters a different dimension: Earth-50101, a.k.a. Mumbattan, a dazzling amalgamation of New York City and Mumbai. Within minutes, Miles and his BFF from 2018’s “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld), encounter that world’s Spider-Man, Pavitr Prabhakar (Karan Soni), an Indian teenager who received his powers not via spider bite, but through magic. The sequence launches them all through the vertiginously vertical metropolis, as they frantically try to stop the film’s villain, the Spot (Jason Schwartzman), from using Mumbattan’s supercollider to increase his dimension-hopping abilities.

WARNING: MAJOR spoilers ahead for “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”When you open up the entire Spider-Verse, you’re going to meet a lot of Spider-Men. But, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” brought the appearance of more than just Spider-men, -women, and -animals — it also brought a few major live-action characters.Once again, spoiler warning; this is where you turn back if you don’t want to know who we’re talking about just yet.OK, still here? Let’s get into it.

The live action Moana adaptation has found its director! – Just Jared Jr Prince William is “trying to woo” the people of Wales – Celebitchy These are the best gifts to get your Little Mermaid obsessed friend – Popsugar Watch the new trailer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem now! – Just Jared Jr

While Disney owns Marvel and all of its characters, Sony still has the film rights to perhaps the biggest one of them all—Spider-Man. Though the two studios have combined forces on three ‘Spider-Man’ films recently, Sony has been milking the IP for all its worth, with various spinoffs, including “Venom,” “Morbius,” and “Kraven the Hunter.” And it would appear Sony isn’t stopping anytime soon with spinoffs.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor As “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” finally hits theaters this weekend, the producers behind the trilogy have their attention set on the third installment, next year’s “Beyond the Spider-Verse.” However, that’s not the only web-slinging project that’s on their minds. Producer Amy Pascal says a Spider-Woman and live-action Miles Morales movie are in the works. “You’ll see all of it,” she told me Tuesday at the “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” premiere in Los Angeles. “It’s all happening.” Producer Avi Arad teased that moviegoers will see a “Spider-Woman” movie “sooner than you expect.”

With the release of “The Little Mermaid” live-action remake over the last weekend, it’s clear that Disney is still pushing hard for live-action redos of the studio’s most popular animated films. And the latest one to pick up developmental steam is “Moana,” which is being spearheaded by Dwayne Johnson, who is already announced as a producer on the film, as well as reprising his role of Maui from the animated version.

Disney isn’t the only studio remaking its animated hits as live-action films, with Dreamworks getting in on the action with its upcoming live-action remake of “How to Train Your Dragon”.

A live-action remake of the beloved animated movie How to Train Your Dragon is currently in the works and Universal Pictures has announced the young actors who will take on the lead roles of Hiccup and Astrid.

Mason Thames and Nico Parker are set to star as Hiccup and Astrid in Universal’s new live-action adaptation of DreamWorks Animation’s How To Train Your Dragon. Dean DeBlois is directing the pic with the film set to bow on March, 14, 2025.

The Little Mermaid 's live-action remake of the 1989 animated classic has once again faced criticism, this time for its makeup choices. Disney received backlash when a timelapse video showcasing Ursula's makeup was shared, drawing negative comments from drag queens.The clip, posted on Twitter last week, sparked a debate among drag performers who argued that Melissa McCarthy's makeup should have been done by an LGBTQ+ artist.

Disney’s live action movies are huge money makers!

Two songs from the original The Little Mermaid were cut from the live-action remake – Just Jared Jr Jamie Bell now has primary custody of the son he shares with Evan Rachel Wood – Celebitchy Kim Zolciak is reportedly begging for her RHOA job back – DListed New couple alert?! – Just Jared Jr

In a blink and you’ll maybe miss it moment, the original Ariel, Jodi Benson, pops up in the new live action version of The Little Mermaid.