Warner Bros. has confirmed that it is moving forward with plans to produce a LEGO film.
Perhaps not unsurprisingly, the production will be a CGI/live-action hybrid, with approximately 80% of the film slated to be CGI bricks.
Warner Bros. could kick off Lego pre-production by next week after New South Wales officially confirms that a sizable grant has been awarded
to produce the film in the Australian state.
Interestingly enough, the Lego movie is marching forward despite the fact that the LEGO Universe massive multiplayer online game will be shutting down due to low subscription numbers.
The film has been in relatively quiet development since 2008.
Dan and Kevin Hageman penned the original scrip, while Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs team – Phil Lord and Christopher Miller – were subsequently brought in to finalize the script and direct the film.
Of course, this isn’t the first collaboration between LEGO and Warner Bros. The comapnies have been working together steadily for years, though usually in the opposite direction, as the popular LEGO franchise of video games has depicted several Warner Bros. film properties, including the Batman and Harry Potter franchises.
Recently, Warner Bros. announced that it has struck a deal with LEGO to open the entire DC Universe to video games, clearing a potential path for more super hero based LEGO titles.
Unfortunately, the film plot remains a complete mystery.
We know only that it will take place in the LEGO universe, but anyone familiar with LEGO toys knows that that story-world covers everything from Ancient Egypt to Atlantis, Robin Hood to Star Wars, modern cities to alien landscapes.
The story could, quite literally, take place in almost any historical or fictional setting, and still be contained within the ‘LEGO Universe’. Hopefully, a synopsis will be released soon.
The untitled LEGO film will begin casting in the new year, and should begin production in the spring or summer of 2012 and could hit theaters sometime in 2014.
