If your air conditioner goes on the fritz, or your washing machine blows up, or your WarnerMedia streaming service conks out, there just might beGremlinsin your queue. The studio announced today that a 10-episode animated prequel series toJoe Dante’s 1984 comedy-horror is on its way, titledGremlins: Secret of the Mogwai. The series will be written byTze Chun(Gotham), who will also serve as co-executive producer.
The originalGremlinsintroduced the Mogwai, a race of loveable furry creatures that burn under the light, multiply in water, and turn into a hideous, nasty version of themselves if you feed them after midnight. (Hopefully, the prequel series explains when “after midnight” officially ends, a detail that has infuriated me more than it probably should for 27 years.)Secrets of the Mogwaiwill tell the story of a young Sam Wing, the future shop owner who sells a Mogwai named Gizmo toHoyt Axton’s Randall Peltzer inGremlins.
The animated series will premiere on the still-untitled streaming service alongsideDenis Villeneuve’sDuneseries, theAnsel Elgort-ledTokyo Vice, and whateverJ.J. Abramsand his Bad Robot TV armare up to.
Here’s the official synopsis forGremlins: Secret of the Mogwai:
In the animated television adaptation, we travel back to 1920s Shanghai to reveal the story of how 10-year-old Sam Wing (future shop owner Mr. Wing in the 1984 movie) met the young Mogwai called Gizmo. Along with a teenage street thief named Elle, Sam and Gizmo take a perilous journey through the Chinese countryside, encountering, and sometimes battling, colorful monsters and spirits from Chinese folklore. On their quest to return Gizmo to his family and uncover a legendary treasure, they are pursued by a power-hungry industrialist and his growing army of evil Gremlins.
“Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai” will be produced byAmblin Televisionin association withWarner Bros. Animation. The series will be written byTze Chunand executive produced byDarryl Frank(“The Americans, “Animaniacs,” “Amazing Stories”),Justin Falvey(“The Americans,” “Animaniacs,” “Amazing Stories”) andSam Register(“Teen Titans Go!” and the upcoming series “Animaniacs”) with Chun andBrendan Hay(“Dawn of the Croods,” “Robot Chicken”) serving as co-EP.Dan Krall(“Coraline,” “Scooby-Doo!") will serve as supervising producer.
