Best-selling children’s comic book “Bone” is getting a big-screen adaptation. The movie couldn’t come at a better time. The source material is perfect for today’s audiences hungry for more animated family fun.
The comic book revolves around three small cousins from the Bone family who are all bald and resemble ghosts with big noses. The three become separated from each other in a strange valley after being chased out of their hometown. They also find themselves being hunted by creatures. A girl named Thorn and her grandmother take in the three Bone cousins, sharing that an evil power called the Lord of Locusts is threatening the land.
Jeff Smith created “Bone.” The Eisner and Harvey Award winning series was self-published through Cartoon Books for 19 issues before getting picked up by Image Comics for its last seven issues. It was originally released from 1991 to 2004. Scholastic Books recently gained the series a whole new audience when it published the books in the form of trade paperbacks and sold millions of copies to date.
BAFTA award nominee P.J. Hogan will direct and co-write “Bone.” He also won an AFI award in the category of “Best Short Fiction Film” for “Getting Wet.” Hogan is well-known in Hollywood for directing “Peter Pan” and “My Best Friend’s Wedding.”
The movie is produced by Dan Lin and Jon Silk of Lin Pictures with Animal Logic. Lin produced the “Sherlock Holmes” movies and “Terminator Salvation.” Silk was a production assistant on “The Village” and “The Manchurian Candidate.” Animal Logic is the animation company for “Happy Feet 2″ and “Legends of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole.” This leads me to believe the movie will be in 3D.
Patrick Sean Smith is writing the film. He is the creator of the successful ABC Family series “Greek.” Smith also wrote for “Everwood” and “Summerland.” Smith was an executive producer for teen sci-fi show “Kyle XY” as well.
There’s no doubt that “Bone” could kick start a franchise if it is received well by audiences. The success of the trade paperback versions of the comic book proves there’s an audience for the characters. Let’s just hope for a strong script and excellent animation.
“Bone” is scheduled for release in 2014. The rights to the series were purchased by Warner Brothers in 2008. There are no cast announcements to be made yet.
Source:
Todd Brown, “Big Screen Adaptation of Jeff Smith’s Bone Lands a Writer and Director,” Twitchfilm.com
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Eric Shirey is the founder and former editor of Rondo Award nominated movie news websites MovieGeekFeed.com and TheSpectralRealm.com. His work has been featured on Yahoo!, DC Comics, StarWars.com, and other entertainment websites. Eric has interviewed and worked with actors like Harrison Ford, Brooke Shields, Gerard Butler, Brendan Fraser, Selena Gomez, and many more.