Captain Planet and the Planeteers‘ long-awaited live-action adaptation is getting a big boost — and a major twist. In a competitive situation, Netflix has landed for development Captain Planet, a live-action series based on the cult animated show, Deadline has learned. It hails from Greg Berlanti’s Berlanti Productions, Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way and Warner Bros. Television where Berlanti Prods. is based.
Mrs. Davis co-creator/executive producer Tara Hernandez will be writing the adaptation of the 1990 environmental superhero animated series Captain Planet and the Planeteers, which ran on TBS and in syndication for six seasons.
Appian Way previously spearheaded a live-action feature Captain Planet take. Originally set up at Paramount Pictures in 2016 with Glen Powell co-writing with Jono Matt and potentially starring, the project never materialized, with the rights eventually reverting to Warner Bros. Discovery, though Powell had remained passionate about it as his star rose fast post-Top Gun: Maverick.
Appian Way’s DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson executive produce the Captain Planet live-action series alongside Berlanti Prods.’ Berlanti, Sarah Schechter and Leigh London Redman. Powell is not involved but Matt is a producer, sources said.
Reps for Netflix declined comment.
Conceived by Ted Turner, Captain Planet and the Planeteers follows five teenagers who tackle environmental disasters with the help of a superhero, Captain Planet. The animated series was produced by DIC Enterprises (Seasons 1-3) and Hanna-Barbera Cartoons (Seasons 4-6).
Berlanti is no stranger to the superhero genre — he built an expansive DC universe at the CW. This marks Berlanti Prods.’ second high-profile live-action series adaptation of a beloved WBD animated property for Netflix, joining the upcoming Scooby-Doo origin series. At Netflix, the company also was behind hit thriller drama series You, co-created by Berlanti.
Berlanti Prods.’ current slate includes NBC’s Brilliant Minds and the CW’s All American. The company’s pipeline also includes horror thriller Stillwater, based on the Skybound comics, which has a series order at Amazon with Berlanti and Carly Wray adapting; mystery Foster Dade in the works at Hulu; Dilettante, starring Jeff Daniels, set up at Apple; and a family drama at HBO Max.
Environmental causes have been at the heart of Appian Way’s documentary slate with projects such as the Emmy-winning The Path Of the Panther, We Are Guardians, Virunga, And We Go Green, Fin, The Loneliest Whale and Ice On Fire as well as the kids animated series Ozi: Voice of the Forest.
After a decade as a writer-producer on The Big Bang Theory and spinoff Young Sheldon, Hernandez co-created with Damon Lindelof and served as an executive producer and showrunner on Peacock’s AI-themed limited series Mrs. Davis. She is repped by WME. Berlanti Prods. is repped by CAA; Appian Way by LBI.
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