The controlling partner of Stan Lee Universe (SLU) Kartoon Studios has signed a transformative deal with the UK’s GFM Animation (GFM) (10 Lives, X Factor In The Jungle, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie) to develop, finance and produce a dynamic slate of five animated feature films, marking a significant milestone in the development of projects from the extensive SLU catalogue featuring stories and characters created by legendary comic book creator Stan Lee.
“Through Stan Lee Universe, we are dedicated to continuing the legacy of one of the most iconic and prolific creators in the world, who continues to inspire fans globally with recent mega-hits such as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. These new projects, developed from Lee’s original ideas, will introduce his magic to younger generations and continue to engage his loyal fans,” said Kartoon Studios development & production SVP Gregg Goldin. “Our new partner, GFM, has a history of producing quality films for the entire family, and fresh off their successful debut of 10 Lives at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, they continue to prove their expertise in the independent animation landscape. We are excited to partner with them on this ambitious slate of projects.”
“Stan Lee is a singular creator. The stories and characters Stan created and co-created have mesmerised multiple generations of fans across the globe for many decades,” said GFM Animation chairman Guy Collins. “We are honoured to partner with Kartoon Studios and Stan Lee Universe to celebrate Stan’s tremendous contributions to pop culture and entertainment by bringing quality animated films for all ages to big screens around the world.”
Kartoon Studios’ new partnership with GFM, which develops, produces, finances, and sells independent movies, aims to bring to life select properties from the SLU catalogue, each project chosen through mutual selection for their potential to appeal to a broad audience demographic and families. GFM has assembled a team of LA-based talented writers with previous experience of working across Marvel projects, to develop the first scripts, working alongside the GFM team in London and Kartoon Studios. The first three treatments will be ready for presenting to distributors at the forthcoming Cannes Film Festival.
