‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’: Disney Teases New Animated Reboot for December
Who knew in 2007 that Greg Heffley would actually become famous? Disney+ plans to release an animated Diary of a Wimpy Kid film in December 2021. The film looks to adapt the original graphic novel hybrid and reboot the 20th Century Fox live-action films.
A ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ reboot
When the Jeff Kinney books were first adapted for the big screen, 20th Century Fox opted for live-action. Starring Zachary Gordon as Greg Heffley, the first film followed the events of the first book, from the Halloween hijinks to the dreaded ‘Cheese Touch’ finale.
The animated reboot looks to follow the same premise, with the teaser poster revealing a piece of moldy cheese.
According to Diary of a Wimpy Kid ‘lore,’ the Cheese mysteriously appeared on the outside basketball court one day. No one claimed it, so it sat and molded. When one kid inevitably touched it, they became a social outcast, possessing the ‘Cheese Touch.’
Even though it only appeared in the first book, the Cheese became synonymous with the series.
Altogether, four live-action films were released under Fox. After the original, Rodrick Rules released following the plots of the second and third books, then Dog Days adapting the fourth book.
Most recently The Long Haul came out in 2017 which recast Bumblebee‘s Jason Drucker as Greg Heffley.
The official description appears to lean toward a more friendly Greg
Fans of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series know that Greg Heffley is not exactly altruistic.
He consistently acts selfishly, throwing friends under the bus, and spawning more than one fan theory asking if Greg Heffley is a sociopath.
The animated movie’s description downplays these aspects of Greg’s character.
“Greg Heffley is a scrawny but ambitious kid with an active imagination and big plans to be rich and famous – he just has to survive middle school first,” the description reads. “As details of his hilarious – and often disastrous – attempts to fit in fill the pages of his journal, Greg learns to appreciate true friends and the satisfaction that comes from standing up for what is right.”
Seeing as the film’s target demographic will likely be younger, it makes sense for Disney to skew the film toward learning a lesson.
Jeff Kinney said the animated ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ has been like “sitting on a wonderful secret”
MovieWeb reports that Kinney commented on the animated film.
“This film feels like the book come to life, and it’s exciting to see Greg Heffley and his family and friends in their fully-animated glory,” Kinney said. “It is the Wimpy World in a way no one has seen before. Working on this movie, I feel like we have been sitting on a wonderful secret. I can’t wait to finally share it with the world!”
Kinney has been publishing the books for well over a decade. The next installment, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Big Shot, releases in October 2021.
There are no signs of slowing for Kinney.
With more than 250 million copies around the world, the series is one of the best-selling book series in history.
Disney+ looks for the new animated film to kick off more sequels. With so many fans, audiences can be certain they have not seen the last of Greg Heffley.
