NEWS: Thundercats to get Remake / Remodel Treatment Just Like Every Other '80s Cartoon

CULTURE: Thundercats to get Remake / Remodel Treatment Just Like Every Other '80s Cartoon

There’s breaking news in the world of reinvigorated 80s franchises: the oddly popular toon-series Thundercats are back in action and will soon have their very own live action movie! Just like Transformers!

Warner Bros. announced yesterday that first-time screenwriter Paul Sopocy has sold the so-called “origin story” of the Thundercats to Spring Creek Productions, with the film ultimately to be released by Warner Bros. Therefore, this is not a remake of the preexisting Thundercats – HO! TV movie that came out in 1986. For those of you not familiar with the basic Thundercats premise, Variety summarizes:

Of course they left out all the good bits about Mutants, Lunataks, Berserkers, and Snarfs, but hopefully some if not all of the weirdly gay creatures will make it into the movie. One can only imagine that the original theme song probably won’t make the cut either, which is a shame:



News of the new Thundercats comes shortly after the announcement that Warner Bros will also make a live-action He-Man movie, probably in the hopes of making everyone forget the stillborn Dolph Lundgren version that came out in 1987.

What can we expect next? Fraggle Rock has been announced, Alvin and the Chipmunks is being finished a few buildings away from me as I type this, The Dark Crystal is getting a sequel that should start filming any day now, and even The Smurfs and Voltron are rumored to have scripts completed. If we have no choice but to consume these cannibalized cartoons of yore, here’s to hoping someone remakes M.A.S.K.… now that’s a theme-song:

oh dear god .. have we really reached a point that nobody can come up with better creative?

Why does this kind of news depress me? They have every right to do this - and sometimes these do-overs work out really well (ex. the "reimagined" Battlestar Galactica). Yet my gut reaction is to get upset when I think about my cherished, childhood memories being mined in this manner.

At least no one has made a "Starblazers" movie......yet.

yeah, if they made a MASK movie, i would so live in the theater for the duration of the theatrical run.

on that note, who else as a kid was devastated by that eric stoltz/cher movie by the same name NOT being about shapeshifting cars with cool masked drivers?

but you have to consider that all of those "cherished childhood memories" were only there to promote toy lines. yes, we bought into it as kids, but look back now and tell me that transfrormers and thundercats weren't horribly made, generic action cartoons.

besides, i think i'd rather see a silverhawks movie than thundercats anyway.

I at least hope this one is okay... Thundercats was my fave when I was a kid.

Yeah, exactly. The only movie out of this crazy list that I've got any hope for is the new Fraggle movie, like you said. The Muppet Blogspot has said that

I'm actually pretty damn excited.

we'll know hollywood has truly run out of ideas when we get a Snorks movie...

on a different note, I think there's actually a decent chance of something decent being made with the newer Henson projects.

Oh Wow... Cheetara has been my fantasy for YEARS ... Thundercats was just so funny... I used to love the little moralising bit at the end lol As usual could be gret but will probably be terrible :o( But I'll hold judgement till i hear who's gonna be cheetara :o)

... and Dolph's he-Man movie... co-staring Courtney Cox!!! She doesn't talk about that one much lol

I'm going to give this the benefit of the doubt until proven wrong by a trailer.
Although 2 things would piss me off:

1. In the original exodus of the Thundercats, they were all naked, if theres no naked Cheetarah, I'll be pissed (not getting my hopes up though)

2. So help me if they don't make Tygra fucking tight, I will be pissed

I'd see it, I liked Snorks and Smurfs for similar reason, they had a European, if not, non-American, feel to them.

We so had a debate about this at work. Everyone wants to see the new Transformers movie, I say it looks terrible and I wouldn't waste my cash. However I did paint the Thundercats logo on the side of my car so it will be difficult for me not to check it out. Don't under estimate crazy eighties toon fans.

Thundercats drivers side door

MLP passenger door

Sadly after two years of sporting the Thundercat mobile it had transmission failure. I now have a new car, boohoo for no Thundercat but hooray for reliable wheels. Bring on the Thundercat movie and let it be good or else!

Ancient spirits of evil, transform this decayed form to Mumm-Ra, the Ever-Living!

i agree with handsome_rob, i didn't realize anyone else remembered silverhawks.

oh, this is going to stink to high hell - i don't really think it's a cartoon that will transfer well to live action without being complete pants, or looking like a movie of 'cats' - shitty make-up and all. bastards

Wow. The one of the TV shows explicitly created to sell toys (it was co-created by Mattel for that reason) comes back for another round. When I found out that little bit of information, I felt so used. I loved Thundercats when I was a kid. Now I just feel dirty.

eh, i probably won't see any of these "exploiting my 80s childhood NEW AND IMPROVED WITH BETTER SPECIAL EFFECTS" resurrections.

i'd prefer to think they don't exist, but they do and there's nothing i can do to stop michael bay from gaying up everything i liked as a child, so i may as well just ignore them.

I myself am rooting for Bravestar. He was the shit. Plus look at all the others: Centurions, Bionic Six, Battle Beasts! And M.U.S.C.L.E. How sweet would a live action M.U.S.C.L.E. movie be.

And what about the guys who rode around on the giant flies, or the Visionaries, the guys with the weird chest holograms because holograms were the most important thing ever in the 80s. Or the Sky Raiders, who effectively turned my brothers room into an expansive version of cat's cradle.

so many cartoons and toys. Oh so many!

We were too young to know better, and we were punished entirely too much for our crimes. It still just comes down to whether a studio can market the merch or not. It still happens today. If a suitable toy line can't be conceived of, a cartoon series does not get made. fucking wankers

I've been wanting to re-do Thundercats for years, but as a new animation rather than a live action. I would just take out the campy 80's elements and bring it back home to the gritty reality aspect.

I think a part of my soul just died with my childhood.... That is horrible news. Why not leave it the way it was and let us cherish the good parts bout being a kid?

My desire for a Thundercats movie is tempered by the knowledge that I shouldn't get my hopes up about it being any good.

I'm hoping for the best and expecting the worst.