The List!!!: Five Upcoming Movies Based On Beloved Cartoons

In The List!!!, I do a list that just reeks of being click-bait, analyzing a particular topic or subject that pertains to something major occurring in pop-culture. This week, in honor of the Ninja Turtles coming back to cinemas, I take a look at five upcoming movies that will be taken to the big screen.


Power Rangers: Lionsgate is in desperate need of a post-Hunger Games franchise, and this one might just be their ticket to box office glory. They've already got Roberto Orci (one of the folks behind the new Star Trek films) writing it, and considering Lionsgate desperately needs a new franchise ASAP, I could see this hitting theaters as soon as 2016. I've got no exposure to this franchise, but it'll probably follow the route of Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and be darker and more realistic.

Voltron: This one has been around for ages, and to my knowledge, is currently chilling over at Relativity Media. Considering how much cash Ninja Turtles is supposed to make this weekend (Deadline Hollywood says it could hit $55 million), I suspect this one will be fast-tracked considering it too is based on a beloved cartoon from years ago that plenty of potential for nostalgia and CGI spectacle.

Captain Planet: The hilarious Funny Or Die skit where Don Cheadle plays Captain Planet seems to have inspired Hollywood to give the environmentally friendly character a chance on the silver screen. Again, I am completely unfamiliar with the show itself, but from what few YouTube clips I've seen, it would amuse the hell out of me if they turned this thing into some gritty PG-13 action movie.

Clifford The Big Red Dog: This one actually has a release date; April 8, 2016. I have no idea what celebrity they'll get to play the massive pooch (what are the odds James Franco winds up doing it?), but project will be a live-action/CGI family film in the vein of Alvin and The Chipmunks. No words on the plot yet, but I've got no doubts it'll wind up connecting to other potential film adaptations of fellow PBS kid programs Zoboomafoo and Arthur.

The Magic School Bus: This also has a release date, for June 17, 2016. This one will be a PG-13 action film where Mrs. Frizzle uses her class (who have been aged up to High Schoolers) to help her fight crime in a mystical bus. When an evil warlord comes from ancient Japan to modern day New York, it's up to Frizzle and her students to stop him and restore order to our world. Tina Fey is playing Mrs. Frizzle, Logan Lerman is playing Arnold and Seth Rogen is the bus.

Don't worry, that last one is a joke, but my God, it sounded way too real compared to the likes of movies starring Clifford the Big Freaking Red Dog/