DreamWorks alumni hope to create their own Paddington success with a Winnie-the-Pooh prequel

With Winnie-the-Pooh entering the public domain earlier this year, it’s not just macabre horror fanatics who are looking to craft their own stories on the beloved, cartoon bear. A prequel film to A.A. Milne’s classic book has entered the development stage, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

A group of DreamWorks alumni, including Mike de Seve (Madagascar, Monsters Vs. Aliens, Shrek 2, Beavis And Butt-Head), John Reynolds (The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show), and Charlene Kelly are looking to give endear a new generation of children to the honey-obsessed bear and hoping to channel success similar to the newer Paddington and Peter Rabbit franchises.

Like Paddington, the Winnie-the-Pooh prequel will be paired with a subsequent television series following its release in 2024. While achieving financial success on par with Paddington may be achievable, crafting a children’s film that rivals Citizen Kane is an entirely different task.

“I think this unsinkable young cub is totally relatable for today’s kids, with his hell-bent craving for honey and his ludicrous schemes to get it,” says de Seve. “The whole gang is hilarious, and are even more hilarious as kids, we’re finding out.”

“A.A. Milne’s bear has aged gracefully in the last hundred years. But what happened, back when, that made him and his pals who they are in the book?” Kelly muses, rhetorically. “A heck of a big adventure, that’s what—one that needs a big screen. Audiences will be transported to somewhere they never expected.”

“We’re telling the surprising origin story of the ‘silly young bear’ and his friends, when they were still kids, in a way designed to connect with 21st-century kids,” says Reynolds.

Of course, Disney held exclusive copyright over Winnie-the-Pooh storytelling for sixty years, developing films, TV series, video games, and shorts. It’s a matter that was taken to court several times, all to Disney’s gain. However, no amount of corporate power could stop Winnie-the-Pooh’s inevitable entrance into the public domain, and alas Disney’s long-held grip on one of their most profitable characters was lost. The most recent project helmed by Disney featuring Winnie-the-Pooh was 2018's live-action/animated feature Christopher Robin, starring Ewan McGregor as the title character.