Disney’s Live-Action ‘Pinocchio’ to Film Next Year

Disney’s train of live-action adaptations just continues rolling, and it doesn’t look like it’ll slow down any time soon. With Mulan, The Lion King, Dumbo, and Aladdin already in production, the studio now has its sights set on the story of the puppet-turned-real boy, Pinocchio.

The live-action Pinocchio movie has been in development for some time, with Paddington director Paul King taking over the film earlier this year. While details about the movie, and its development schedule, have been scarce to this point, its writer has finally revealed when filming is set to begin: next year.

While speaking to Latino-Review Media, writer Chris Weitz said that the Pinocchio script is currently being worked on, and the goal is to begin shooting next year in Europe.

“It’s going to shoot in England and Italy starting next year,” Weitz said. “We’re still in the early stages of, you know, development and developing the script, so there’s no casting to talk about, but I’m very excited about it.”

By the way it sounds, any information about Pinocchio is still a long way off. Weitz, who also penned the script for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, is currently promoting his directorial debut, Operation Finale. Given that he’s busy with that project’s release, the Pinocchio script likely won’t be finished until later this year.

In addition to the script, a crew needs to be put in place, locations need to be scouted, and actors need to be cast for the role. Given that Weitz didn’t mention when in 2019 production was set to begin, and that filming is only “starting” in 2019, it’s safe to say that the movie is quite a ways away.

Still, it sounds like Disney and the creative team are fully invested in bringing Pinocchio to life, which doesn’t come as a surprise, given the studio’s current push for live-action adaptation of classic movies. Following the success of Beauty and the Beast and Jungle Book, Disney is set to release at least three of these adaptations in 2019. Dumbo, Aladdin, and The Lion King are all confirmed to hit theaters next year, and it’s likely that we’ll also see the debut of The Lady and the Tramp, along with the launch of Disney’s original streaming service. Mulan is currently being filmed and will arrive in theaters in 2020.

What do you think about Disney’s upcoming Pinocchio movie? What other Disney classics do you want to see get the live-action treatment? Let us know in the comments!