New streaming service Paramount+ is bringing a whole host of exciting projects to the platform, with live action adaptations of popular animated seriesThe Fairly OddParentsandDora the Explorernow among them. Both shows will make the leap into live action for their respective new series, something which Nickelodeon’sThe Fairly OddParentsdid once before withA Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner!.
Running for 10 seasons and 172 episodes,The Fairly OddParentsis one of thelongest-running animated serieson the network. Created by Butch Hartman for Nickelodeon,The Fairly OddParentsfollows the adventures of a miserable 10-year-old boy named Timmy Turner who is neglected by his parents and abused by his malevolent 16-year-old babysitter, Vicky. One day, he is granted two fairy godparents named Cosmo and Wanda, who grant his every wish to improve his miserable life. of course, as is so often the case with these kinds of arrangements, Timmy’s wishes would usually backfire in some way, causing a series of problems that Timmy is forced to fix.
The series has been met with positive reviews throughout its run, winning a host of different awards, with the adventures of Timmy and his Fairly OddParents becoming a beloved staple for many kids. A live action movie which showed Timmy all grown up but not wanting to mature into an adult premiered in 2011 to huge ratings. ThisParamount+live action take onThe Fairly OddParentshas been described as a reboot, and it is not yet known whether creator Butch Hartman will be involved.
As for fellow adventurerDora the Explorer, she has made the jump over to live action once before in 2019’sDora and the Lost City of Gold. The animated series follows the title character, Dora, a seven-year-old girl of Latin American descent, as she embarks upon numerous adventures in the wilderness with her friend Boots, a monkey, and a variety of fun and useful tools. Created by Chris Gifford, Valerie Walsh Valdes and Eric Weiner, the seriespremiered on Nickelodeonback in 2000, ending with an 8th season in 2019.
Brian Robbins, president of ViacomCBS Kids & Family, first announced both the live action reboot ofThe Fairly OddParentsand the live actionDora the Explorer, reportedly hinting that the new series of the latter will take cues fromDora’s last real-life adventuresinDora and the Lost City of Gold. Directed by James Bobin and starring Isabela Moner as Dora alongside Eugenio Derbez, Michael Peña, Eva Longoria, Danny Trejo and Benicio del Toro, the movie is set after the events of the animated series and finds the intrepid explorer going to High School. As usual, adventure is not too far away, and Dora soon finds herself leading a rag tag group of teens on a mission to save her parents and solve the impossible mystery behind a lost city of gold.
Animated shows being adapted into live action does not always work out, but hopefully Paramount+ can prove otherwise with bothThe Fairly OddParentsandDora the Explorer, both of which potentially lend themselves well to the change.
The Fairly OddParentsandDora the Explorerare just two of many projects recently announced for release on Paramount+, including a CGI reboot ofRugrats, aFrasierrevival and the return ofBeavis and Butthead. This comes to us courtesy ofDeadline.
