Alita & Spy Kids Director Robert Rodriguez’s Next Movie Revealed
Robert Rodriguez is stepping into entirely new creative territory with a project that draws from one of his earliest artistic passions. The filmmaker behind some of Hollywood’s most distinctive action and family franchises revealed his next move, and it comes with a personal origin story spanning over a decade.
Robert Rodriguez to write, direct and produce a Christmas movie
Robert Rodriguez will write, direct and produce an original animated Christmas movie titled The Naughty List for Paramount Animation, Variety reported exclusively. The project marks Rodriguez’s first animated feature and the first major development title under new division head Jennifer Dodge. Rodriguez has been developing the concept for over a decade from drawings and stories created with his children.
Paramount sources confirmed the film will combine holiday themes with a modern, next-generation approach to storytelling. Rodriguez is best known for genre work like From Dusk Till Dawn and Alita: Battle Angel. However, he found major success with younger audiences through the franchise-spawning Spy Kids series in the 2000s.
Rodriguez confirmed the news on Instagram Monday and shared artwork from the project, including kids scaling a giant snowman. “Way back in the day I was a cartoonist before I became a filmmaker,” he wrote in his post. He called the return to drawing and animation one of his greatest creative motivations for the project.
Rodriguez described The Naughty List as “a funny, irreverent, and surprising Christmas tale for the whole family.” He added that the story ranks among his personal favorites and expressed excitement about revealing more soon. He noted he is “super pumped” to return to “one of my first loves, drawing and animation.”
Neither Paramount nor Rodriguez has disclosed a production timeline for the film. Dodge joined the studio in January under David Ellison’s new leadership regime at Paramount. She reports to co-chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein and oversees all animation operations from development through release.
Dodge previously served as president of Spin Master entertainment and consumer products, the company behind PAW Patrol.
Source: Comingsoon.net