Live-Action The Aristocats Remake in the Works at Disney

Disney’s recent renditions of live-action remakes and reboots doesn’t seem to be slowing down. On Thursday, it was reported that a new adaptation of The Aristocats‘ is currently in the works at Disney’s live-action division. The script will be written by Peter Rabbit‘s Will Gluck and Onward‘s Keith Bunin, with Gluck producing via his Olive Bridge Entertainment banner. Reports indicate that the project is in such early development, it is unclear if it will ultimately be released in theaters or on the Disney+ streaming service. The aesthetic of the animal designs will reportedly be similar to the live-action Lady in the Tramp film that arrived on Disney+.

Based on the 1970 animated film released by Disney, The Aristocats followed a family of Parisian felines who come to find out they areset to inherit a fortune from their owner. When the owner’s jealous butler kidnaps them and leaves them in the country, they must team up with a smooth-talking tomcat to try to make it back home before it’s too late.

The original The Aristocats was directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, with a cast that included Phil Harris, Eva Gabor, Hermione Baddeley, Dean Clark, Sterling Holloway, Scatman Crothers, and Roddy Maude-Roxby.

‘It is extremely heartwarming and thrilling to see new generations of people singing and enjoying the Winnie the Poohs that we wrote so many years ago, things like that,” Richard Sherman, who co-wrote some of the film’s songs, told Entertainment Weekly in 2012. “They’re very, very special to us. And of course any writer who has had the good fortune of being involved in some great work like a movie that was made by Walt Disney – he’s a lucky guy because they never die. They keep being renewed and being put into Blu-ray and God knows what else in the future. New generations are seeing them. I get a kick out of my granchildren glued to the TV watching The Aristocats, for example. They just love to watch it. They say, “Grandpa, you wrote that, didn’t you?” And I say, “Yeah, I did!””

A follow-up sequel was originally planned by Disneytoon Studios in 2005, with hopes of using 3D animation to bring its story to life. The sequel would have followed Marie, one of the film’s fan-favorite cats, who becomes smitten by another kitten aboard a luxury cruise ship. However, she and her family must soon take on a jewel thief on the open seas. The project was ultimately cancelled, alongside planned sequels to Chicken Little and Meet the Robinsons, after John Lasseter became Disney’s chief creative officer.

What do you think of Disney developing a live-action remake of The Aristocats? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

h/t: Deadline