Netflix to Establish Roald Dahl Universe with Animated Adaptations of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, More

By Scott Russell  |  November 27, 2018 | 12:38pm
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Netflix to Establish Roald Dahl Universe with Animated Adaptations of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, More

Netflix subscribers who grew up on the fantastic stories of English author Roald Dahl have been handed a golden ticket today, as the streamer has announced an exclusive set of animated event series based on some of Dahl’s most beloved books. This includes new adaptations of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG and many more, with production on the first of the Dahl animated shows set to begin in 2019.

Netflix and The Roald Dahl Story Company made this joint announcement on Tuesday, detailing what they’re calling “the Roald Dahl universe of stories”—that’s a key term, it turns out, as Netflix VP of Kids & Family Content Melissa Cobb told Variety last month that the Dahl adaptations will “potentially overlap,” with “added threads that connect all of them.” Netflix’s press release notes that they intend to “remain faithful to the quintessential spirit and tone of Dahl while also building out an imaginative story universe that expands far beyond the pages of the books themselves.”

Speaking of which, here’s the complete list of titles included in the agreement between Netflix and the Roald Dahl Story Company:

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, The Twits, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, George’s Marvellous Medicine, Boy – Tales of Childhood, Going Solo, The Enormous Crocodile, The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me, Henry Sugar, Billy and the Minpins, The Magic Finger, Esio Trot, Dirty Beasts and Rhyme Stew.

You’ll notice the slate does exclude a couple of Dahl’s most prominent stories, including James and the Giant Peach and The Fantastic Mr. Fox. It remains to be seen whether those titles will perhaps join the Netflix fold at a later date. The Witches isn’t included either, though that story is perhaps better left out, considering its darker subject matter, not to mention the goal of Netflix’s Dahl universe.

“Our mission, which is purposefully lofty, is for as many children as possible around the world to experience the unique magic and positive message of Roald Dahl’s stories,” said Roald Dahl’s widow, Felicity Dahl, in a statement. “This partnership with Netflix marks a significant move toward making that possible and is an incredibly exciting new chapter for the Roald Dahl Story Company. Roald would, I know, be thrilled.”

“Immersing ourselves in the extraordinary worlds of Roald Dahl stories has been an honor and a massive amount of fun, and we are grateful for the trust the Roald Dahl Story Company and the Dahl family have placed in our team to deliver more moments of shared joy to families around the world,” added Cobb. “We have great creative ambition to reimagine the journeys of so many treasured Dahl characters in fresh, contemporary ways with the highest quality animation and production values.”

See Netflix’s Dahl universe teaser below and stay tuned for more info on these shows.

 
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