It's all in your hands!

[rogueslayer452]

Animorphs is getting a movie!

I honestly didn't think this would happen, because as popular as the book series were when I was a preteen/teenager it did kind of fade into obscurity with the rise of other book series that gained way more traction and popularity. Add to injury that the books eventually became out-of-print, so most probably didn't know of their existence until recent years with the notice that all of the books are available to read for free online. However, it seems like things are turning around, from the books being made into comics to this movie announcement, this is precisely the resurgence that we've been needing! Although I do question whether or not a movie is a good medium for such an adaptation, considering all that it entails and I fear that it might be watered down too much and it'll be considered too similar to the YA material that's come out in recent years to be noticed and therefore flop, which is why I kinda wish it was more of a long miniseries instead, but this is still exciting news regardless.

Also, it's worth mentioning that unlike a certain other author, K.A. Applegate is actually an ally, she also has been incredibly supportive of the fans and their personal interpretations, theories, and headcanons of the characters and books, even acknowledging that she could've done better in terms of representation when she wrote them.

And yes, I do recommend anyone who hasn't read Animorphs to do so, it may have been a kids book series but it never shied away from the dark subject matters, and it did get very dark. Body horror, murder, death, cannibalism, war, psychological trauma, it's all there and it's great.

(It makes me wonder if Everworld will ever get noticed, not just for an adaptation but just in general because it is often overlooked, it truly is the underdog of KAA's work imho.)

Comments

[sherrilina.livejournal.com]

Yaaaasssss I was so thrilled when I saw the news on ONTD! (And always nice to have an excuse to whip it my icon for my OG OTP! Setting me up for a lifetime of doomed ships, haha).

I mean, after the heartbreak of other movies like Artemis Fowl (which I waited 17 years for), and The Dark is Rising, and Cirque du Freak, I am lowering my expectations, but at least all the movies mentioned by the producer were fairly good adaptations, so that is something.

I agree that a TV show (with a higher budget than the original, lol, though at least CGI is now cheaper and more advanced) is a better format, but if this movie happens and is good maybe it could lead to that? I really hope they consider leaning into the nostalgia craze and making it set in the 90s (like Stranger Things was set in the 80s), so that they don't have to mess it up by changing the pop culture references and trying to explain why they never have working cell phones where the plot demands they don't.

And yes, KA >>>> JKR. Not just outside the books, but in then as well. I always rolled my eyes at JK's bragging about the finale HP book being a "bloodbath" because she killed off a few minor characters, when KA actually took real risks and killed off a main character and many others and gave everyone PTSD and dared to show the real costs of war. It is just a much darker and more realistic depiction. While I might have been disappointed at the time, I appreciate it as an adult. (And I am proud to say that she asked me to high five her when I said that I admired her choice at a book festival!)

so most probably didn't know of their existence until recent years with the notice that all of the books are available to read for free online.

Lmao it's not that recent, I was reading them online over a decade ago! ;) (They really do hold up well). I used them as a distraction from studying for finals in college, lol. And they were pretty famous and popular, so most Millennials at least have heard of them in the US.

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

but if this movie happens and is good maybe it could lead to that?

That's what I'm thinking, too. It actually would be a good way to test the waters, a movie to basically kind of introduce people to the story, seeing how well it does and if there's an interest and an audience that wants it, and transfer it to television. Because otherwise idk how they would do a movie franchise, where the cut-offs would be, etc. And I'm with you in regards to keeping with the 90s, and since there has been a resurgence of the 90s recently the same as people have had/still are having with the 80s, I would want them to keep in line with that, as well.

It's exciting about this news, but it does make me nervous because it has to be done right. Like, I loved the shortly loved 90s show and all and they did their best with the limitations they had, but at the same time I understand the frustrations people had with it because it didn't follow the books. It borrowed from them, but it wasn't a faithful adaptation entirely. And for a movie adaptation, well, you have to have people involved that know and understand the story, and want to do it justice. There's been a lot of disappointments with adapting children's books (Artemis Fowl being the most recent one), and it makes me apprehensive and I certainly have low expectations because anything can go wrong.

I always rolled my eyes at JK's bragging about the finale HP book being a "bloodbath" because she killed off a few minor characters, when KA actually took real risks and killed off a main character and many others and gave everyone PTSD and dared to show the real costs of war.

Don't get me wrong, I loved the HP books, but this is absolutely true. Deathly Hallows was dark, but it wasn't a bloodbath. K.A. Applegate didn't sugarcoat anything when it came to the true horrors of war and what it does to someone, and her series didn't end with a neatly tied bow like HP did (which I hated the HP epilogue so much because of that, tbh). KAA took those risks, and I'm glad she did.

Oh, I have no doubt that it existed online for a long time, but it was the first I heard about it some years ago, so I'm sure that it was the same for others as well. I guess it depends on where you are online to where this information was being circulated. There's also a lot of people, especially younger people, who don't even know of the existence of these books and what they're about so that's why it's constantly being announced that hey, it's available online to read.

[sherrilina.livejournal.com]

And now I have that them song stuck in my head, blargh. :p

BTW, are you familiar with poparena's Animorphs videos? He had an interesting one nine months ago examining why Animorphs is a product of the 90s but how it also reflects themes big today in the age of Trump.

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

;)

And no, I'm not familiar with his videos. But now I'm intrigued.

[xfirefly9x.livejournal.com]

Shiny!

I don't really remember reading much of Everworld as the local library didn't have many of the books. Kinda sad. I should track them down some day.

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

We bought them when they initially came out. I still have the unofficial mini soundtrack mix CD that was attached to it, too, which I constantly listened to. I think Everworld would make for a good miniseries, considering it's only twelve books total.

[xfirefly9x.livejournal.com]

Nice! Must have a good collection. :D

I spent a few years tracking down all the Animorphs books from eBay and random online used bookstores, etc. Took so long to get them all.

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

I've been kind of doing that with some of the book series I started when I was a teenager but never did finish my collection of (Fearless, Samurai Girl, some V.C. Andrews books that I've been missing). In retrospect it was due to me thinking that I'll get to them eventually, but never considered the possibility that they would be out-of-print, or very difficult to find.

[xfirefly9x.livejournal.com]

You should keep looking! It took me years to get all the Animorphs series, but I did find them eventually. Just took much persistence and seeking out really obscure used bookstores and the like that I'd never heard of before. And book festivals, etc! :)

[haebin.livejournal.com]

I never read the book. To be honest, I never heard of it before, but "Body horror, murder, death, cannibalism, war, psychological trauma" sounds like something I would like to watch in a movie. :>

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

I only hope that the movie adaptation keeps those things in, because otherwise what's the point? K.A. Applegate never coddled her young readers, she never sugarcoated the horrors of war and what it can do to someone, and she knew that kids were able to handle the grotesque and that's what I want to see featured on the screen. I just worry that movie studios might want to tone it down to appease the parents or whatever, and that's just one of my main concerns.

[hiddleasaurus.livejournal.com]

Awesome! I read those books as a kid and I always wanted a movie or series but we never got one. :D

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

We did get the shortly lived Nickelodeon television series in the late 90s, which I absolutely adored and still do to this day even if it wasn't exactly a faithful adaptation of the books themselves. But I think we're long overdue for having an attempt at a new adapted version of the books, especially considering how our technology has advanced to show the more difficult scenes, such as morphing and the Andalites and other alien creatures.

[blakmagjick]

I never got into this series, and honestly don't think I even heard about it until just a few years ago when a lot of people started talking about it again.
If it's free online, I should check the out!

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

You should, it's really good. :)

[noybusiness.livejournal.com]

So glad to hear that about K.A. Applegate! No joke, I coincidentally was actually thinking about her last night in relation to the JK Rowling horribleness (two series I read around the same time with female authors with initials) and hoping this was the case.

I was on this post on Fantasy Literature recently, where I recommended Animorphs for its use and exploration of Point of View: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/giveaway/can-speculative-fiction-help-fight-racism/

Everworld would also be a good property to adapt. I read it when I was growing up, too. I really need to get to reading Remnants; I never bought it when it was being published but I now have all the books in my library.

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

Every time JKR has done fucked up over the years many tend to refer to K.A. Applegate as being the exact opposite. The tweet I linked in the post is most commonly referenced because it's a perfect example of how to respond to fans. But really, K.A. Applegate has a glowing number of examples of this for years. So she's a good one. :)

[orangerful.livejournal.com]

Hopefully Scholastic pushes out reprints soon!

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

One can only hope! :D