Depending on your age, the ’90s programming at Nickelodeon was either a childhood staple or was part of late nights of your high school/college years. Either way, the run of shows was very strong, and in this era of maximizing IP value, it’s a bit of a surprise the network hasn’t done anything with them…until now…
Variety reports that Nickelodeon is going to ambitiously put characters from all their ’90s shows into a single movie, "NickToons," with "Napoleon Dynamite" director Jared Hess to helm the project. That’s right, the worlds of "Doug," "Rugrats," "Ren & Stimpy" and "Ahh! Real Monsters" will collide (and, hopefully, "Hey Arnold!") for what’s being described as a "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?"-esque film. Hess is also writing the project with regular collaborator Jerusha Hess, and it’s certainly an ambitious undertaking.
So, why cram all these properties into one movie? I’d wager it’s a good way to see what characters fare well on the big screen and resonate, and which don’t, rather than spending all kinds of money on a "Ren & Stimpy" movie (for example), only to find it can’t hold the tone for 90 minutes, or the audience isn’t there for it. We’re just wondering if any of the original voice actors or creators (John Kricfalusi of "Ren & Stimpy" fame for example) will be involved.
Thoughts? Does this make no sense, or do you see it as being kinda genius. Let us know below.