In This Week in Animation News, I’ll take a look at the previous week in the world of animation in order to get you caught up on everything you might have missed. It’s your one-stop shop for news regarding cartoons, anime, and animated web series. We’re talking movies, TV shows, digital shorts, and everything in between!

For the latest animation stories we’ve already covered on the site this week, take a look at the following links. Then, check out a selection of new stories below. Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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Image via Bandai Namco

'Tiger & Bunny' Movie in the Works with New Production Partners

Global Road Entertainment is partnering with Bandai Namco Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, and Weed Road Pictures to produce and distribute the film project Tiger & Bunny based on the hit Japanese anime television series. The futuristic live action feature film is being written by Ellen Shanman, and produced by Bandai Namco Pictures’ Masayuki Ozaki, Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Erica Huggins, and Weed Road Pictures’ Akiva Goldsman. The announcement was made today by Lynn Harris, Global Road Entertainment’s President of Worldwide Production, who said:

“We are thrilled to partner with Imagine, Bandai Namco and Weed Road on TIGER & BUNNY. Mr. Ozaki and his team’s globally recognized story and beloved characters provide us with the potential to not only produce a feature film that will appeal to the masses, but also generate a fully developed franchise across the theatrical, television and digital entertainment spaces.”

Bandai Namco Pictures’ Masayuki Ozaki added, “After a long voyage, we have finally reached new ground. We are truly honored to be able to create the future with our collaborative partner whom we wholeheartedly trust. We are determined to live up to our supporters’ and fans' expectations and bring this exciting project to life.”

“Ron, Brian and I are excited to be partnering with Global Road Entertainment and continuing our relationship with Lynn Harris and Rob Friedman to bring the live action feature film based on the beloved series TIGER & BUNNY to fans and audiences around the world,” said Erica Huggins, President of Imagine Entertainment.

Goldsman further added, “I couldn’t be more excited to partner with old friends and new to help introduce TIGER & BUNNY to the rest of the world.”

Tiger & Bunny takes place in a near-futuristic city called “Stern Bild,” where professional superheroes fight crime and save lives on the popular show, “Hero TV.” The old school veteran of the show is Tiger, whose popularity is based on his character, charisma and track record. Tiger is challenged for “King of the Heroes” by the younger, more dashing Bunny, who becomes an immediate rival. But when a super-powered terrorist begins reeking international havoc, the two must join forces to face their biggest challenge yet.

Created and produced by Bandai Namco Pictures (formerly, the Sunrise studio), the Japanese Tiger & Bunny franchise was launched in 2011 as both a manga and anime series that played on late night television. The series finale ended with a live-viewing event at movie theaters nationwide where fans joined together to see its 25th and final episode. Two animated feature films quickly followed – Tiger & Bunny: The Beginning in 2012, and Tiger & Bunny: The Rising in 2014. Both films were a box office success and are listed in the top 20 highest-grossing Japanese films originating from TV anime since 2012. Beloved by fans, the franchise continues to excite and engage its strong and loyal following and has grown to include live-action stage shows, exhibitions, concerts and merchandising through Bandai Namco.

Studio Ghibli's 'Porco Rosso' Returns to Theaters This May

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STUDIO GHIBLI FEST, a nine film monthly series of anime classics, continues with the Porco Rosso. From the legendary Studio Ghibli, creators of Spirited Away, and Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki, comes a dazzling aerial adventure set in and above the scenic port towns of the Adriatic Sea. This special event will play in movie theaters nationwide for three days only on May 20th, 21st and 23rd.

Porco Rosso is a world weary flying ace-turned-bounty-hunter, whose face has been transformed into that of a pig by a mysterious spell. When he infuriates a band of sky pirates with his heroics, the pirates hire Curtis, a hotshot American rival, to get rid of him. But with the help of the teenage girl Fio, an aspiring airplane designer, and sultry lounge singer named Gina, Porco takes to the skies for what may be his final high-flying showdown.

GKIDS and Fathom Events will be presenting the following screenings:

  • Sunday, May 20 at 12:55 p.m. local time (English-dubbed).
  • Monday, May 21 at 7:00 p.m. local time (English-language subtitled).
  • Wednesday, May 23 at 7:00 p.m. local time (English-dubbed)

Tickets for Porco Rosso can be purchased online by visiting here or at participating theater box offices. Moviegoers throughout the U.S. will be able to enjoy these events in nearly 600 select movie theaters. For a complete list of theater locations visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).

Corneila Funke's 'Dragon Rider' Adaptation Adds Stellar Cast Members

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Image via Scholastic

Timeless Films and Constantin Film have today announced that Academy Award and Golden Globe Nominee Felicity Jones, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Primetime Emmy Award Nominee Patrick Stewart and Golden Globe Award Nominee Freddie Highmore will join Tomer Eshed’s Dragon Rider alongside Meera Syal (Doctor Strange), Sanjeev Bhaskar (Absolutely Anything) and Nonso Anozie (Cinderella). Based on Cornelia Funke’s bestselling novel of the same name, the animated family adventure will be produced by Constantin Film’s Martin Moszkowicz and Oliver Berben together with the co-producers Cyborn and RiseFX along with the team of Lumatic. Timeless Films is handling worldwide sales.

Written by Johnny Smith (Gnomeo & Juliet), Dragon Rider trails an unlikely trio of heroes – young silver dragon Firedrake (Brodie-Sangster), Sorrel (Jones) the mountain brownie and a boy called Ben (Highmore) – as they embark on an epic adventure and battle against a vicious, dragon-killing machine called Nettlebrand (Stewart) to find the 'Rim of Heaven'.

Timeless Films has already sealed a raft of deals worldwide on Dragon Rider and is continuing sales heading into Cannes. The film is due to be delivered Fall 2019.

'Trolls 2' Adds Award-Winning Cast Members Sam Rockwell and Chance the Rapper

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Image via DreamWorks

As Deadline reports, Oscar-winner Sam Rockwell  and Grammy-winner Chance the Rapper will be joining the cast of DreamWorks Animation’s Trolls 2 as new characters who will also be getting in on the musical numbers. The sequel looks to top the original animated family film that grossed nearly $350 million worldwide and even generated an Oscar nomination for Justin Timberlake’s song “Can’t Stop the Feeling.” The second installment, set for release in spring 2020, will also feature returning cast members Timberlake and Anna Kendrick.

Other new cast members include Anthony Ramos (Hamilton), Karan Soni (Deadpool franchise), Flula Borg (Pitch Perfect 2) and Jamie Dornan (Fifty Shades of Grey), who join returning cast members James Corden (Biggie), Caroline Hjelt (Chenille), Aino Jawo (Satin), Ron Funches (Cooper) and Kunal Nayyar (Guy Diamond).

Produced by Gina Shay, directed by Walt Dohrn and co-directed by David P. Smith, the all-new installment explores pop, country, hip-hop, hard rock, funk, and EDM music genres. Here's the synopsis:

Queen Poppy and Branch make a surprising discovery — there are other Troll worlds beyond their own, and their distinct differences create big clashes between these various tribes. When a mysterious threat puts all of the Trolls across the land in danger, Poppy, Branch, and their band of friends must embark on an epic quest to create harmony among the feuding Trolls to unite them against certain doom.

'LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman - Rage of Atlantis' Trailer Teases the Undersea Adventure

Aquaman must battle foes in the air, on land and in the depths of the Seven Seas, along with some help from The Justice League, to save the day in his latest animated adventure, LEGO® DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman - Rage of Atlantis. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, DC Entertainment and the LEGO Group, the film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on July 31, 2018 on Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and Digital.

The Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD releases of LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman -Rage of Atlantis feature an exclusive LEGO mini-figurine of Jessica Cruz/Green Lantern (while supplies last).

In LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman - Rage of Atlantis, the King of Atlantis must make some difficult decisions to ensure the future of his ocean realm. Under attack from Atrocitus and the Red Lanterns, Aquaman realizes he must relinquish his sovereignty and go on a journey to regain his confidence before returning to his rightful throne. Along the way, Aquaman reunites with the Justice League – including Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and newest member Jessica Cruz/Green Lantern – to conquer Atlantis’ latest enemy and reemerge as the ruler of the Seven Seas.

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Image via Warner Bros. Animation 

LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman - Rage of Atlantis voice cast features opposing forces Dee Bradley Baker and Jonathan Adams as Aquaman and Atrocitus, respectively. The film also stars LEGO DC Super Heroes core Justice League voice cast members Troy Baker as Batman, Nolan North as Superman, Grey Griffin as Wonder Woman (and Lois Lane), and Khary Payton as Cyborg.

Several actors reprise their roles from other notable Warner Bros. Animation/DC Entertainment productions. Alyson Stoner returns to her Young Justice role as Batgirl/Barbara Gordon; Eric Bauza recreates his role as Jimmy Olsen from LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash; Cristina Milizia is back as Green Lantern/Jessica Cruz, as originally heard in DC Super Hero Girls; and Scott Menville reprises his Teen Titans/Teen Titans Go! role as Robin/Damian Wayne.

New to the LEGO DC COMICS Super Heroes films are the voices of Susan Eisenberg as Mera, Fred Tatasciore as Lobo, and Trevor Devall as Ocean Master.

LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman - Rage of Atlantis is directed by Matt Peters from a script by Jim Krieg and Jeremy Adams. Executive producers are Jason Cosler, Robert Fewkes, Jill Wilfert, Sam Register and Brandon Vietti.

Netflix Pays $30 Million for 'Next Gen' at Cannes

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Despite some bad blood between Netflix and Cannes, the streaming giant just made one of the biggest deals of the festival, as reported by Deadline. A new $30 million worldwide distribution rights deal for Kevin R. Adams and Joe Ksander's animated feature Next Gen went to Netflix after rounds of competitive bidding. (China will see the film's release by Alibaba and Wanda instead.)

The voice cast features Charlyne Yi, Jason Sudeikis, David Cross, Michael Peña and Constance Wu, in a story based on Wang Nima's "7723" comic and is described as "an action-packed and touching tale of two unlikely friends in a world filled with robots."

Adams and Ksander previously collaborated on 9, with Adams as the animated films cinematographer and Ksander as the animation director. Baozou financed the film and produced with Tangent Animation.

Keep an Eye Out for Spain's Animation Rise

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Image via Abano Producions

Variety has a fantastic spotlight on feature animation that's being produced in Spain in recent years. They include projects like Raul de la Fuente’s harrowing war-torn drama Another Day of Life, a Western-Chinese animation hybrid about a washer-girl who protects dragons called Dragonkeeper, and Alberto Vazquez's upcoming film, Unicorn Wars. All three drew big audiences at the animated movie showcase Cartoon Movie earlier this year, and they're fine examples of animation coming out of Spain right now. They're following in the footsteps of animation houses like Studio Ghibli, aiming to produce 50+ movies by 2020; only 20 animated films had been produced between 2012 and 2016, so this is a tall order to fill.

Leading the way in this plan is both a focus on family-friendly animated films, which has served Spanish animation studios well in the past, and an influx of foreign in vestment, like Ilion's production partnership with David Ellison’s Skydance Media. The fruits of that labor will be the coming-of-age teen fantasy Split, written by Linda Woolverton (Beauty and the Beast) and directed by Vicky Jenson (Shrek) and the comedy Good Luck Bad Luck, with Alessandro Carloni (Kung Fu Panda 3) directing a screenplay from Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger (Trolls).

Family movies, especially the 3D CG kind, also play well on the streaming market, which is why Netflix acquired global rights to Christmas comedy Klaus, the directorial debut of Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos. There's a good chance that more and more of the content produced by Spanish animators and production houses will be crossing over to U.S. shores for years to come, so keep an eye out!