The planned Playmobil movie will be titled Playmobil: Robbers, Thieves and Rebels as Cross Creek Pictures comes aboard to distribute
Announced last fall, a Playmobil movie is on the way. Following in the footsteps of their Danish rival, LEGO, the German toy company Playmobil has been developing its own feature film take on the company’s popular toy line. Today, Variety has a major update, reporting that the Playmobil movie has been titled Playmobil: Robbers, Thieves & Rebels. What’s more, the film has officially entered production with Cross Creek Pictures — the company responsible for recent releases Black Mass and Everest — set to distribute domestically.
Created by Hans Beck in 1974, Playmobil playsets have become a favorite of children, best known for their iconic figurines that pre-date the LEGO minifigure. Over 2.7 billion figurines have been sold worldwide, with 30 different play worlds for the filmmakers to mine for story ideas.
Paris-based ON Entertainment is partnering on the Playmobile movie alongside Wild Bunch and Pathe. DreamWorks veteran Bob Persichetti (Monsters vs. Aliens, Shrek 2) is writing and directing the film alongside a development team built of the same creatives that made ON Entertainment’s The Little Prince feature.
“Following ‘The Little Prince,’ we’re proud to bring a new cultural icon to the screen,” ON’s Dimitri Rassam tells the trade, “These figurines have sparked the imagination and creativity of generations of kids worldwide. We are very excited to work with Bob on creating a great adventure in the world of Playmobil.”
It is also noted that Playmobil: Robbers, Thieves & Rebels is just the first film in what is being planned as a franchise.
In addition to Rassam, the Playmobil movie is being produced by Aton Soumache, Alexis Vonarb and Moritz Borman, with production set to commence in Montreal at ON Entertainments animation division for a worldwide theatrical release at the end of 2017.
