Daniel Kaluuya Slated to Produce a “Barney” Movie with Mattel Films

Daniel Kaluuya Set to Produce Upcoming Barney Movie

Oscar-winner Daniel Kaluuya is attached to an upcoming Mattel Films project based on the once hugely popular purple dinosaur Barney.

It’s being described as an A24-type movie. That could be good news or bad news depending on which kind of A24 movie the new Barney project is being referred to as similar to. There’s the A24 Oscar-winner for Best Picture, Everything Everywhere All at Once and this year’s financial flop, Beau is Afraid. A not “R” rated  “Barney” movie would seem, on the surface, to fall somewhere in-between those two extreme examples of the kind of products that A24 releases. This new “Barney” picture is not a children’s film, however. It seems to be more adult-oriented judging from the quotes circulating in recent online articles.

Daniel Kaluuya is one of the most ambitious actors working today and was the star of last year’s hugely popular Jordan Peele film, Nope. Kaluuya is in the age range of people who grew up with Barney the dinosaur. What kid who grew up on “Barney and Friends” doesn’t remember the lyrics of the song that the title character used to sing, “I love you, you love me?” It appears the new picture will deal with how people who were raised on Barney have grown up and implemented the lessons which were taught on the program in their daily lives.

A Mattel Films executive has said that Charlie Kaufman and Spike Jonze movies are similar in nature to what the latest Barney project will be attempting to do. That certainly doesn’t spell something that will be family friendly although the Barney movie is not being said to be an “R” rated-type of project. Kaluuya is hoping that the script will be strong and news articles have said that the film could be trying to show the “Barney” Generation’s disenchantment with certain aspects of life. It’s uncertain how all this will translate to box-office dollars at the present time.

Barbie is the most current Mattel project which will have all eyes on its box-office figures to see if there even is the potential of projects like Barney to be possible box-office studio tentpoles. Kaluuya would probably not get involved with a project unless there was genuine value to it but Barney as a Spike Jonze-type movie is certainly an unusual proposition and a pretty big financial risk. We will probably have to see how Greta Gerwig’s vision of Barbie fares financially before cameras begin to roll on this Kaluuya Barney movie. Barbie will certainly open strongly at the box-office but will it have nice legs like Barbie dolls at the box-office? Time will tell.

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