THUNDERCATS Movie Writer Simon Barrett Says Fans Are "Not Ready" For Adam Wingard's Adaptation

It was recently announced that Warner Bros. is moving forward with a feature adaptation of classic '80s animated series ThunderCats, and writer Simon Barrett has now teased what fans can expect...

By MarkCassidy - May 18, 2021 03:05 AM EST

Filed Under: Thundercats

ThunderCats fans have been waiting for an update on plans for a feature adaptation of the beloved '80s animated series for a long time, and back in March, we got word that Godzilla Vs. Kong director Adam Wingard is working on a CGI/animated hybrid for Warner Bros. with long-time collaborator Simon Barrett.

We still don't know very much about this new take on the feline heroes, and Barrett wasn't about to let any cats (Thunder or otherwise) out of the bag when he spoke to ComicBook.com. However, he did hype the project up by suggesting that Wingard's adaptation will exceed all expectations.

"I will say this, our ThunderCats adaptation is going to be really, really cool. I don't think people are at all prepared for how long Adam Wingard has spent thinking about ThunderCats. They are not ready for Adam's ThunderCats movie. It is going to destroy."

Wingard actually did give us some idea of how "obsessed" he is with ThunderCats back when the movie was first announced.

"This is a huge passion thing for me. Nobody on this planet knows or has thought as much about Thundercats as I have. They gave me the reins. I saw this as an opportunity to do a new type of fantasy sci-fi spectacle film that people have never seen before."

Are you looking forward to seeing what the GVK director has in store for the ThunderCats?

Just in case you're not familiar with the cartoon, ThunderCats follows a team of cat-like humanoids (Lion-O, Cheetarah, Panthro, Tigra, Jaga, Wilykit, Wilykat and Snarf) who leave the dying planet of Thundera in search of a new home for their species. They settle on a planet that comes to be known as Third Earth, where they battle Mumm-Ra and their old enemies, The Mutants, for control of Lion-O's Sword of Omens.

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48 Comments

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bkmeijer2 - 5/18/2021, 3:59 AM

Not familiar with Thundercats really, nor am I familiar with Barrett. GvK was fun, so I think I'll give Wingard a chance though

CorndogBurglar - 5/18/2021, 4:22 AM

"CGI/animated hybrid"?

Why did I think this was going to be live action?

Blergh - 5/18/2021, 4:35 AM

I'll see how this develops. I have an even more strained relationship to 80s cartoon adaptions than to video game adaptions, there hasnt really ever been a good one.
Masters of the Universe, Gem and the Holograms, GI Joe 1&2 all were really bad and had little enjoyment attached.

Hope for the best, Wingard is a cool director so I'll check it out for sure

GhostDog - 5/18/2021, 4:40 AM

Don’t tell me I’m not ready

The1st - 5/18/2021, 6:11 AM

@BlackBeltJones - Yeah, agreed. Reverse psychology is cute and all, but unnecessary.

Matador - 5/18/2021, 4:41 AM

Hope it's better than Transformers & G.I Joe movies

SimplyAz - 5/18/2021, 4:42 AM

One of my favourite cartoons along with He-Man.

Me and my cousin both had Lion-O action figures. His ones arm became loose, he came to my house and swapped his for my one. Remember telling my Mum but she just hushed me up.
I've hated him ever since.

Man cartoons in those days had intros as good as the show.

Feralwookiee - 5/18/2021, 5:03 AM

@SimplyAz - Of course. In all fairness, the shows simply existed just to sell toys, so the openings had to hook kids quick.

SimplyAz - 5/18/2021, 5:09 AM

@Feralwookiee -

Oh yeah man.

When I watched the He Man documentary on Netflix, I was surprised to learn the He Man action figures came first and then the cartoon

Feralwookiee - 5/18/2021, 6:34 AM

@SimplyAz - They ALL were that way. G.I. Joe, Transformers, Masters of the Universe etc existed simply to sell merchandising. There was actually a big push in congress to ban this kind of advertising to kids at one point in the 80's.

It's hard to imagine now, considering the constant mindless consumer "culture" that dominates the western world, but at one point many people were opposed to this onslaught of advertising. Hell, I'm old enough to remember watching sports on network t.v. for free with no ads on the backstop or outfields in baseball.
Now get off my lawn!

SimplyAz - 5/18/2021, 7:03 AM

@Feralwookiee -

Definitely interesting how much ads have taken over. On top of that there are 30 minute videos of reviews of products.

I miss the free Sports on normal TV but it's crazy how much those packages cost, which leads to more Pirating.

Nice Lawn pal

Feralwookiee - 5/18/2021, 8:39 AM

@SimplyAz - Lol As I get older, I find myself watching less and less and I don't pay for it anyway.
But, in general, the constant bombardment of ads is nauseousating imo.

Juggernaut2021 - 5/18/2021, 5:04 AM

He sounds like the Trump of Thundercats.

Feralwookiee - 5/18/2021, 5:06 AM

Maybe they could still do it mostly live action by implementing some of that "revolutionary" cgi fur technology that they used in Cats. 😉

I'm still waiting to see Taylor Swift's butthole...

Loonattakk - 5/18/2021, 5:51 AM

As soon as I watched Avatar the first thing that crossed my mind was a Thundercats movie. If they can do it with the tall blue folks they can do the TC justice. Glad to see we're getting it in some form though.

LilJimmy - 5/18/2021, 5:52 AM

Feralwookiee - 5/18/2021, 8:40 AM

@LilJimmy - Yes. That quote sounds very Synderesque.

NathanielX - 5/18/2021, 6:27 AM

In the long run will be more easy to get actors on board without having to spend hours on make up.

Dredd97 - 5/18/2021, 6:30 AM

Sweet! I'm excited. Thundercats lore is pretty heavy, so we'll see how this goes. Between this and Seth Rogen's love for the Ninja Turtles in his adaption, hopefully 80s cartoons will get their due. Unlike Transformers and GI Joe

LittleSween - 5/18/2021, 6:44 AM

Any adaptation other than animated feels like it's gonna come across as "Cats"
Can't say I'm particularly excited for this, but then again, I was always more of a He-Man fan than ThunderCats.

1 2

THUNDERCATS Movie Writer Simon Barrett Says Fans Are "Not Ready" For Adam Wingard's Adaptation

It was recently announced that Warner Bros. is moving forward with a feature adaptation of classic '80s animated series ThunderCats, and writer Simon Barrett has now teased what fans can expect...

THUNDERCATS: Anthony Mackie Hopes To Follow CAPTAIN AMERICA By Bringing Panthro Back To The Screen

THUNDERCATS Director Adam Wingard Explains How GVK Paved The Way For His CGI Adaptation

THUNDERCATS: Anthony Mackie Hopes To Follow CAPTAIN AMERICA By Bringing Panthro Back To The Screen