Oh no, they’re making a Cinematic Seussiverse. Vanity Fair reports that Warner Animation Group has made an “expansive filmmaking deal†to turn three of Dr. Seuss’s books into theatrical animated films. These will be the “first-ever adaptation†of Oh, the Places You’ll Go!, a redo of The Cat in the Hat, and a spinoff called Thing One and Thing Two. J.J. Abrams has signed on to produce the Oh, the Places You’ll Go! movie, and we’re fascinated to see how he’ll give that one a narrative. As for Cat in the Hat, which is planned for 2024 and will be directed by South Park producer Erica Rivinoja, the less said about the Mike Myers version, the better.
These films will all be tied together and serialized à la MCU. Susan Brandt, president of Dr. Seuss Enterprises, told Vanity Fair, “For the first time we’re not just doing one film for one book. We’re going to franchise-build beyond the initial story of these books and find out what happens next,†because yeah, that’s the thing that people like about Dr. Seuss books: internal logic and character depth. It’s also misleading to call this project the “first time†they’ve interwoven the characters and stories of Dr. Seuss: Have they not seen Seussical the Musical? We need to know if J.J. Abrams identifies as a Gertrude or a Mayzie.