It’s been a full year since the official shutdown of Blue Sky Studios. When the animation studio was bought out and shut down by Disney, they were forced to shelve their upcoming film Nimona. Today, creator ND Stevenson and Netflix have announced that the streaming service will be finishing the film! The synopsis can be found below.
The film will be directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane, who previously teamed up to direct Blue Sky’s final film, 2019’s Spies in Disguise. Roy Lee (Godzilla vs. Kong), Karen Ryan, and Julie Zackary (The Angry Birds Movie) will be producing. Meanwhile, Robert L. Baird (Ice Age: Scrat Tales), Megan Ellison(2010’s True Grit), and Andrew Millstein (The Fifth Element) will be executive producing. As for our cast of colorful characters, only the main three have been announced so far. Chloë Grace Moretz (2019’s The Addams Family) will be voicing the plucky shapeshifter, Nimona. Riz Ahmed (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) will be voicing Nimona’s boss, Knight Ballister Boldheart. Finally, Eugene Lee Yang (The Try Guys) will be voicing the heroic Ambrosius Goldenlion. The film will be done in a partnership between Netflix and Annapurna Pictures. The animation will be handled by DNEG, who have previously done work on Ron’s Gone Wrong, Dune, and Venom: Let there be Carnage.
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Based on the award-winning young adult graphic novel, Nimona was initially picked up by 20th Century Fox in 2015 with plans to make a feature film. But when Fox was bought out by Disney, a lot of projects ended up being scrapped, Nimona was one of them. According to reporter Borys Kit, an anonymous team member told him that the film was 75% completed when it was canceled. Initially, the COVID-19 pandemic was thought to be the blame. But when Disney was under fire in March for their silence on the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, several former staffers came forward with further claims about the company holding prejudice against the movie’s queer themes. According to these claims, Disney executives had issues with a same-sex kiss between two main characters. While Disney has since claimed to have heard the voices of their upset employees and have vowed to do better, Nimona’s fate was up in the air. The former Blue Sky staffers expressed heartbreak over the film’s cancellation.
Considering its rough start, production, and limbo, this is a victory for LGBTQ creatives and audiences alike. Though, for Netflix to pick this up, it almost seems like destiny. The streaming service and Stevenson actually have history, since Stevenson was the main developer behind She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. The show, a reboot of the 1985 series, was praised for its LGBTQ+ representation. As it gave a home to the residents of Eternia, Netflix will now be homing the little lost shapeshifter, and we couldn’t be happier. Nimona is set for release in 2023.
