Yes, you read that correctly. Netflix has announced new animated shows coming to the streaming service, including a Universal Monsters show where the classic monsters are reimagined as vehicles.
Mighty MonsterWheelies will be coming to Netflix in 2024. The idea stems from a deal Netflix has with Dreamworks Animation Television. Basically, Dreamworks wanted to work with IP they had, and being part of Universal, they had access to Universal Monsters. But those monsters weren’t enough, so they decided to turn them into cars because preschoolers love cars, right?
The vehicles in the Mighty MonsterWheelies show combine half-monster, half-rescue vehicles into new characters that “serve and protect” the city of MotorVania. We have a Frankenstein fire truck, a Mummy ambulance, a Dracula rescue chopper, and a Werewolf street sweeper. The villains are characters called Phantom Freeze and an Invisible Van (can’t wait to see the toy of that one.)
Teri Weiss, executive vp development, TV at DreamWorks Animation Television, talks about how monsters are misunderstood.
“Usually, monsters are the thing to be fearful of — the misfits, the misunderstood. We wanted to do something unexpected, so we’ve flipped it and made them heroes of the town. This idea that we could translate specific elements into each vehicle and give them all unique powers felt like it was an homage to the monsters that they represent, so there’s also something fun in there for parents.”
The show’s executive producer, Stephanie Simpson, offered this comment.
“We know that most of our young audience will meet these iconic monsters for the first time when they watch our series,. Our goal is to make their first monster-y encounter as entertaining and engaging as possible.”
Universal is going all in on their Universal Monsters with Epic Universe at Universal Orlando, and an untitled Universal Monsters film is also in development. It makes sense that they would want to push this IP to families that might book trips to the theme park.
The Mighty MonsterWheelies show was announced with more episodes of Gabby’s Dollhouse, another popular franchise showcased at Universal. Other shows announced by Netflix include Hot Wheels Let’s Race, Dee & Friends in Oz, and CoComelon Lane.
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Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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