Netflix Is Turning ‘Redwall’ Books Into Animated Movie And TV Series

A new rights deal between Netflix and Penguin Random House Children will bring Brian Jacques’ beloved Redwall fantasy novels to life! The books in the series start with Redwall and include 21 others, the final being The Rogue Crew. They have sold 30 million copies globally and loved by readers for heroic tales and the characters involving mice, moles, hares, and badgers. According to Penguin Random House, "The animals of Redwall Abbey are peaceful by nature—yet when they encounter evil, the kind-hearted mice, hares, and otters are brave in the face of battle. In this epic series, adventure abounds and legends are made." Netflix is reportedly also developing an event series based on the character of Martin the Warrior, reports Variety. Patrick McHale, the creator of Cartoon Network’s Over the Garden Wall, is set to write the feature film.

While Brian Jacques passed away in 2011, his incredible stories will live on and now thanks to Netflix, will come to life on screen. This will be the first time a feature film of any of Jacques’ works will be made. This is also the first time that the film rights to the entire book series have been held by the same company. "We couldn’t be more delighted to announce this deal,” says Ben Horslen, Fiction Publisher, Penguin Random House Children’s. “These perennially popular stories have been etched onto the hearts of millions of readers, and we are thrilled to partner with Netflix to bring those beloved characters on screen for families worldwide to enjoy.”

According to Amazon, the author published his first children's book in 1987. Brian Jacques was born in Liverpool, England on June 15th, 1939. At the age of 15, he decided to set out and explore the world. As a merchant seaman, he traveled to faraway ports including New York, Valparaiso, San Francisco, and Yokohama. But that life got lonely so he returned to Liverpool where he worked as "a railway fireman, a longshoreman, a long-distance truck driver, a bus driver, a boxer, a bobby (Police Constable 216D), a postmaster, and a stand-up comic." He reportedly once said, "I sometimes think it ironic for an ex-seaman, longshoreman, truck driver, policeman, bus driver, etc., to find success writing children's novels."

If you're looking for more adaptations, there's a whole slate of upcoming animated features on the streaming service, including Richard Linklater's Apollo 10 ½: A Space Age Adventure, Chris Williams' The Sea Beast, Nora Twomey's My Father's Dragon, Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio. The company’s animated features include Academy Award-nominated Klaus and Glen Keane’s Over the Moon.