Its been four years in the making, but MGM have finally found a director for their animated Addams Family film. The project was put into development in the wake of the cancellation of Tim Burton‘s stop-motion Addams Family project, but very little was heard about it since then, so little that some wondered if it was still on the table at all.
So MGM will be relieved that they have finally announced a director for the project: Conrad Vernon, co-director of Sausage Party. He’ll also produce, while the film will be written by Pamela Pettler (Corpse Bride) and CG animation work is already underway in Vancouver.
We’re certainly overdue for a new Addams Family project, and it’s surprising that it’s taken Hollywood this long to create something based on a popular brand name, which is something they’re usually quick to jump on. It’s been arguably twenty years since the last Addams Family project.
Created by cartoonist Charles Addams in the late 1930s, the Addams Family consists of Gomez and Morticia Addams, their children Wednesday and Pugsley, close family members Uncle Fester and Grandmama, their butler Lurch, the disembodied hand Thing, and Gomez’s Cousin Itt.
Vernon is an animation veteran at this point, having also co-directed Shrek 2 as well as solo directing Monsters Vs. Aliens and Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, plus he’s also slated to direct a new version of another famous family, The Jetsons, so this is a no-brainer choice from a studio looking for a brand new incarnation of the spooky family in animation form.
Hopefully the new version can capture the magic of the beloved 90s films, and there’s plenty of potential here with a experienced director in place and a source material that nicely translates to the animated form. Plus who isn’t looking forward to hearing that famous theme tune again?
#Peace.Love.AddamsFamily
