It was announced earlier today that Warner Bros. has set a release date for its planned Ninjago adaptation for September 23, 2016 (in 3D, of course).  That means the LEGO spin-off will smoke-bomb its way into theaters more than six months before The LEGO Movie 2, which opens May 26, 2017.  Chris McKay, who co-directed the nearly half-a-billion-dollar-earning first installment, will be at the helm of the sequel, while the studio has set first-time feature director Charlie Bean (TRON: Uprising) to handle the Ninjago film.  With everyone else under the sun building toward a cinematic universe, it's no surprise that WB and LEGO are doing the same, which will make fans (and collectors) around the world happy for quite some time.  Hit the jump for more.

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As Deadline reports, Ninjago will debut in 3D on September 23, 2016.  Here's what the studio's domestic distribution president Dan Fellman had to say about the announcement:

“Following the huge success of The Lego Movie, we are very excited to build on the Lego franchise. We know there are already ‘Ninjago’ collectors who can’t wait to see their favorite characters on the big screen. This promises to be a terrifically fun and thrilling entry into our Fall 2016 slate, with broad audience appeal.”

Bryan Shukoff and Kevin Chesley penned the screenplay for Ninjago Phil Lord and Christopher Miller will be producing with Dan Lin and Roy Lee, with Jill Wilfert, Seth Grahame-Smith, John Powers Middleton, James Packer and Steve Mnuchin serving as executive producers.

If you're not familiar with the property, here's a taste from a recent trailer: