Skydance Animation's First Movies, 'Luck' And 'Spellbound', Slated For Release In 2022
Skydance Media has found plenty of success on the big screen with the modern Star Trek franchise, the Mission: Impossible film series, Jack Reacher, and World War Z. Plus, they've started to create a big presence on Netflix with action movies like 6 Underground and the recently released The Old Guard. But soon they'll be stepping into the animation arena with their first two animated feature films, Luck and Spellbound, slated to arrive in theaters in 2022.
Skydance Animation announced the official release dates for their first animated endeavors, which will be co-financed and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Luck will arrive first on February 18, 2022, and Spellbound will follow later in the year on November 11, 2022. So what are these movies about?
Even though Luck will be the first movie from Skydance Animation, we don't know much about it. Peggy Holmes (Disney's Secret of the Wings, The Pirate Fairy) will be at the helm of the movie, which follows the unluckiest girl alive as she stumbles upon the never-before-seen world of good and bad luck. Teamed up with some magical creatures, she'll uncover a force more powerful than even luck itself.
Meanwhile, there's a lot more information available about Spellbound. The film is set in a world of magic where a young girl must break the spell that has split her kingdom in two. Perhaps that's not the most original concept, but the movie does have the Shrek team of director Vicky Jensen and producer David Lipman working together again. The script comes from Mulan writers Lauren Hynek & Elizabeth Martin and Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King scribe Linda Woolverton.
Also bringing some magic to Spellbound will be Oscar-winning songwriter Alan Menken, who has penned the tunes of Disney classics such as The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin. Menken will be providing the score as well as original songs, so it sounds like this will be a musical animated adventure. Writing the lyrics will be Glenn Slater (Tangled), and Chris Montan (Frozen, Beauty and the Beast) will serve as the executive music producer.
So it sounds like Skydance Animation has rounded up some of Disney's most talented contributors and a couple of DreamWorks Animation veterans to kick off their new filmmaking branch with a bang. In case you don't remember, they also have ousted Pixar mastermind John Lasseter co-running Skydance Animation with Holly Edwards.
There was some controversy around the hiring of Lasseter at Skydance since the filmmaker left Disney after some sexual harassment allegations came to light during the height of the #MeToo movement in Hollywood. In fact, Emma Thompson was originally slated to start in Luck, but upon Skydance's hiring of Lasseter, she left the project. In a town hall meeting at Skydance last year, Lasseter addressed these issues by saying:
"I am deeply sorry for my actions, which were unquestionably wrong. I very much regret making women feel unsafe or disrespected. I will continue to work every day for the rest of my life to prove to you that I have grown and learned. I am resolute in my commitment to build an animation studio upon a foundation of equality, safety, trust and mutual respect for everyone."
Though many still aren't happy with the fact that Lasseter was able to land such a high profile job in such a short time after these accusations, Skydance Media seems to be confident in his redemption. Though they're not necessarily confident enough to include a quote from him in the press release. Instead, they've left that to Edwards, who said:
"Luck' and 'Spellbound' create rich worlds and compelling characters that we know will resonate with audiences everywhere. It's incredibly exciting to see our team of legendary creatives working around the clock and across the globe to bring these pictures to life."
Along with their first feature films, Skydance Animation is working on a slate of high-end television shows that they will be announcing sometime soon.