Super Dee Duper! Get Out star Daniel Kaluuya’s next project is amazing – he’s giving Barney the Dinosaur his live-action, big-screen break.
The purple anthropomorphic dino was an ubiquitous presence growing up. From 1992 to 2009, Barney & Friends taught young children valuable lessons on friendship and life through the helpful medium of song and dance.
He’s been absent for many years, but it won’t be long before we’re humming ‘I love you, you love me’ – Barney’s getting the feature-length treatment.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, movie producers Mattel Films have partnered with Kaluuya’s 59% production banner to bring the film to screens around the world (along with Rowan Riley and Amandla Crichlow, as well as David Carrico, Adam Paulsen and Bobby Hoppey for Valparaiso).
Currently, the project does not have a studio attached, nor any cast or director.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, Kaluuya said:
Barney was a ubiquitous figure in many of our childhoods, then he disappeared into the shadows, left misunderstood. We’re excited to explore this compelling modern-day hero and see if his message of ‘I love you, you love me’ can stand the test of time.
Barney is just one of Mattel’s properties being prepped for the big screen, including Hot Wheels and Masters of the Universe.
There’s also a live-action Barbie in the works with some mega-talent attached, including Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, Mattel Films’ Robbie Brenner said:
Working with Daniel Kaluuya will enable us to take a completely new approach to Barney that will surprise audiences and subvert expectations. The project will speak to the nostalgia of the brand in a way that will resonate with adults, while entertaining today’s kids.
Carrico, of Valparaiso Pictures, added: ‘Barney is a dinosaur from our imagination, and we can’t wait to get ‘I love you, you love me’ stuck in heads everywhere, yet again.’
It’s an interesting turn for Kaluuya. He was nominated for an Oscar in 2017 for his role in Jordan Peele’s spectacular Get Out. Since then, he’s appeared in Steve McQueen’s heist thriller Widows and the MCU’s superhero smash-hit Black Panther. He’ll next be seen in Queen & Slim – which looks spectacular.
Check out the trailer for Queen & Slim below:
The official synopsis reads:
While on a forgettable first date together in Ohio, a black man and a black woman are pulled over for a minor traffic infraction. The situation escalates, with sudden and tragic results, when the man kills the police officer in self-defence.
Terrified and in fear for their lives, the man, a retail employee, and the woman, a criminal defence lawyer, are forced to go on the run. But the incident is captured on video and goes viral, and the couple unwittingly become a symbol of trauma, terror, grief and pain for people across the country.
There is no indication currently of when the Barney movie will begin production.
Queen & Slim hits UK cinemas on January 31, 2020.
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After graduating from Glasgow Caledonian University with an NCTJ and BCTJ-accredited Multimedia Journalism degree, Cameron ventured into the world of print journalism at The National, while also working as a freelance film journalist on the side, becoming an accredited Rotten Tomatoes critic in the process. He’s now left his Scottish homelands and took up residence at UNILAD as a journalist.