Sony Pictures has released the first official trailer for Harold and the Purple Crayon, giving fans a sense of the high-stakes and meta adaptation of the beloved children’s book. The original book (and its six sequels) centered on a four-year-old boy who could bring anything he drew to life, but the Shazam! star is going to be playing “young at heart” again — seemingly having grown up in a world where it was totally normal that he could draw anything he wanted into existence, only to one day learn he’s living in a storybook, and write himself a door to the real world.
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The trailer feels like Harold and the Purple Crayon is inspired by Free Guy and Barbie, with a healthy dose of the lovable manchild energy that Levi brings to the role of Shazam peppered in for good measure. And, perhaps surprisingly given the source material, it looks like there’s going to be a big, CGI fight in the third act.
You can see it below.
Oscar nominee Carlos Saldanha directs the film from a screenplay by Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb creative team David Guion and Michael Handelman. John Davis (Dolemite Is My Name) is producing through Davis Entertainment.
Harold and the Purple Crayon is one of those books that has been licensed a few times, but failed to make it all the way to the big screen. At one point, Steven Spielberg and Will Smith were attached to the project. Should the film be a hit, there is plenty of opportunity for follow-ups. After Harold and the Purple Crayon, the character of Harold appeared in six more books — Harold’s Fairy Tale, Harold’s Trip to the Sky, Harold at the North Pole, Harold’s Circus, A Picture for Harold’s Room, and Harold’s ABC. Of course, some elements of those may be adapted into the first film, since books aimed at young children are so short that stretching one story to feature-length can be difficult.
Directed by Carlos Saldanha (Rio, Ferdinand) in his live-action debut, Harold and the Purple Crayon is about the eponymous young boy who embarks on a magical mission with the help of his purple crayon. The adaptation of Crockett Johnson’s bestselling children’s book will star Zachary Levi (Shazam! Fury of the Gods), Lil Rel Howery (Vacation Friends), Zooey Deschanel (New Girl), Ravi Patel (Wonder Woman 1984), Camille Guaty (Duster), Tanya Reynolds (Sex Education), and Pete Gardner (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend).
