Disney to Revive Chip ‘n' Dale as Live Action Feature

Disney has picked up a pitch from Robert Rugan, an award-winning commercials director, to revive the classic cartoon duo of Chip ‘n' Dale as a big-screen feature.

Rugan is writing the script for the film, which will be an updated take on the characters in “what is being envisioned as a live-action/CG hybrid,” says The Hollywood Reporter. The Disney-based production company Mandeville Films/TV is producing the feature.

Rugan’s first feature film, Alice's Misadventures in Wonderland, was a 2004 no-budget film that received several awards and was named one of the year's "Indie's to Look For". He has performed a variety of jobs in the film industry, holding roles as director, writer, editor, cinematographer, visual effects, camera and actor. He wrote and directed the shorts The Wallet and the Watch and Infected. He has also created commercials for companies such as Durex, HBO, IFC, Kodak, Nikon, Visa, and his work has earned him two CLIO Awards and the CyberLion at Cannes. THR reports that “He is currently adapting the book series The Genius Files for Warners and wrote an original script titled Beauregard Thibodeau to which he is attached to direct while Logan Pictures is on board to produce."

The Chip ‘n' Dale story first appeared as an animated short in 1941 starring Pluto. In a recent article, The Hollywood Reporter says Chip ‘n' Dale “went on to appear in 22 reels stretching into the mid-1950s where the duo either annoyed Mickey’s faithful four-legged friend or squared off against Donald Duck. They popped up in various Disney cartoons and comics but got a makeover in in 1989 with Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers. The show saw Chip, the brains behind the pair, and Dale, the goofball, running a detective agency and helping animal clients. Disney made three seasons' worth of shows that then ran in syndication for the next decade on The Disney Channel.”

This live-action movie is following the trend of live-action and CG hybrids, which have done well at the box office. Fox is another studio that is in the process of creating hybrid films right now with the fourth Alvin and the Chipmunks. Mandeville’s Muppets Most Wanted will be released in theaters on March 21.

In other Hollywood news, the 2014 Writers Guild Awards winners were unveiled last week at a ceremony held in Los Angeles. Check out the ScreenCraft post, “The 2014 Writers Guild Award Winners!” to see a list of the winners.

Also, don't miss our recent post, Sylvester Stallone's Writer Credit Crisis in The Expendables.