Sonic the Hedgehog Director Jeff Fowler Will Reboot The Pink Panther
Following the surprise success of Sonic the Hedgehog, MGM is enlisting director Jeff Fowler to breathe new life into a completely different franchise. The Hollywood Reporter brings word that the studio has chosen Fowler to direct a new Pink Panther movie. According to the report, “the story will focus on a smooth operating inspector who, thanks to a traumatic event, now has a Pink Panther for an imaginary friend. The latter, although he doesn’t speak, does help solve the case.”
MGM has also hired Chris Bremner to write the new film. Bremner has had his own banner year thanks to his script for Bad Boys For Life, which arrived in January. That movie’s success recently convinced Sony to bring him back for a fourth Bad Boys movie. He’s also working on National Treasure 3 and a big-screen take on Hasbro’s M.A.S.K. toy line.
The Pink Panther movies began in 1963, with Peter Sellers headlining as Inspector Jacques Clouseau, a bumbling police detective. It also introduced the animated Pink Panther character, who soon spawned off into his own cartoon on TV. The original film series spawned 10 installments (five of which featured Sellers) before ending with Son of the Pink Panther in 1993. In 2006, MGM and Sony tried rebooting the franchise with Steve Martin taking over as Clouseau. The movie received overwhelmingly negative reviews. However, it was successful enough at the box office to warrant a sequel, which premiered in 2006. That film fared even worse, and its poor performance killed plans for a third entry.
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Fowler is also currently developing Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which was greenlit by Paramount earlier this year. Before making his feature directorial debut with the first film, Fowler mostly worked in animation. In 2005, he and Deadpool director Tim Miller earned an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Short for Gopher Broke.
MGM has not yet set a release date for their new Pink Panther film.
How do you feel about Jeff Fowler taking over The Pink Panther franchise? Who would you cast as the new Clouseau? Tell us what you think in the comment section below!
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