May 10, 2014
Reports confirm that Fox has acquired the rights to adapt the comic book series MOUSE GUARD for the big screen. The animated film will follow a brotherhood of sentient mouse warriors who band together to fight against evil. Boom! Studios is also attached, and producers are currently seeking writers to pen the script.
The concept sounds similar to the “Redwall” book series by Brian Jacques, which also focuses on sentient warrior animals (mice, shrews, badgers, etc) and their journeys regarding the safekeeping of the Redwall Abbey. Of course, “Mouse Guard” focuses primarily on mouse characters, and the evil they face in their medieval world. The story progresses further after they win the war against the weasel warlord and the soldiers become escorts, pathfinders, weather watchers, scouts and body guards for the mice who live among their territories.
The series originally appeared in 2006, and stood out on bookshelves due to it’s unique shape and size, defying the standard comic size (6½” × 10″) and going with an 8″ × 8″ square format. Archaia Studios Press publishes the bi-monthly series, and it received an Eisner award in 2008 for “Best Publication for Kids” and “Best Graphic Album.”
Ryan Jones is overseeing for Fox. It’s not clear yet if they want to make the story edgier to appeal to a larger audience. It will most likely remain a kids movie on par with most other animated features, and hopefully start a successful franchise for the studio.
Courtesy of: http://www.tracking-board.com/tb-exclusive-fox-snatches-eisner-award-winning-comic-book-series-mouse-guard
