The live-action movie “The Magic School Bus,” starring Elizabeth Banks as Ms. Frizzle, is regaining momentum after six years in development.
Legendary Entertainment acquired the rights from Universal, which originally optioned the project in June 2020. Meanwhile, Rob Letterman (Shark Tales, Detective Pikachu) has signed on to write and direct the film.
“The Magic School Bus” is based on the popular children’s book by authors Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen. Plot details for the film have yet to be confirmed, but the educational series follows eccentric teacher Ms. Frizzle and her class as they go on a field trip in a yellow school bus that magically transforms into everything from airplanes and submarines to spaceships and surfboards to help them navigate terrain such as space and the human body.
In the ’90s, PBS turned “The Magic School Bus” into a popular animated series that aired in over 100 countries and starred Lily Tomlin as the voice of Ms. Frizzle. The animated TV sequel “The Magical School Bus”, starring Kate McKinnon as Mr. Frizzle’s sister Fiona, was released on Netflix in 2017.
Legendary Entertainment is working with publisher Scholastic to produce the new “Magic School Bus.” Producers include Iole Lucchese and Caitlin Friedman of Scholastic, Banks, Max Handelman and Alison Small of Brownstone Productions, Marc Platt and Adam Siegel of Marc Platt Productions, and Mary Parent, Ali Mendes and Cale Boyter of Legendary.
Legendary’s recent projects include “A Minecraft Movie,” “Dune,” “Dune: Part Two,” and the “MonsterVerse” series, including “Godzilla vs. Kong.” Upcoming films include Tom Cruise’s “Digger” and “Dune: Part 3” starring Alejandro G. Iñárritu, as well as adaptations of “Magic: The Gathering” and “Street Fighter.”
