The CW is developing a live-action version of The Powerpuff Girls where Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup are bitter 20-somethings. Kay.
Okay, who had this one on their 2020 bingo card?
According to Variety, The CW is readying a live-action version of The Powerpuff Girls, the Cartoon Network show about a trio of superpowered elementary school-aged girls made from sugar, spice, and everything nice, plus a generous helping of “Chemical X.”
The original show ran from 1998-2005 and became a cult favorite. The adventures of Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup were fun, but also irreverent, as the girls went up against money supervillains and gender-bending demons.
The new show will age the girls up. They’re now in their 20s and resent having been forced to spend their childhoods fighting crime. But when the world needs them, will they be able to get past their bitterness and reunite?
Sarah Schechter, David Madden and Greg Berlanti will executive produce. Berlanti has already had a lot of success with “mature” reboots of more child-friendly material with shows like Riverdale and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, so this seems up his alley. And of course, The CW is known for its Arrowverse shows, so another superhero series will fit right in.
Heather Regnier and Diablo Cody will also executive produce, as well as write. Cody is best known as the Oscar-winning writer of Juno, and I think her getting hired tells us what kind of show Berlanti and company are looking to make. Like Riverdale and Sabrina, I doubt this is gonna be a gritty and dark take on The Powerpuff Girls…more broad and very arch. “Mature,” yes, but also very in-jokey and campy.
Is that something people want? We’ll see if the show gets picked up to series.
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