This article lists feature length animated and live action theatrical, television and direct-to-video films based on toys, tabletop games and trading cards. Many of these films are based on dolls and action figures made by American toy companies Hasbro and Mattel. [1]
Prior to 1977, toys were released together with films as merchandising tie-ins. Films that were suitably toyetic spawned numerous licensed properties, often marketed heavily to children. Beginning in the late 1970s, this approach was flipped as films began to appear that were based on popular toys. In 1977, Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure debuted as the first theatrical motion picture in which a consumer toy was the star. [2] During the 1980s, action figures got their own films, such as Masters of the Universe ( The Secret of the Sword ) and Transformers ( The Transformers: The Movie ), as did dolls, such as Pound Puppies ( Pound Puppies and the Legend of Big Paw ) and My Little Pony ( My Little Pony: The Movie ). Also in the 1980s, the greeting card companies American Greetings and Hallmark Cards created popular characters that were made into toys, on which films were later based, such as The Care Bears ( The Care Bears Movie ), Rainbow Brite ( Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer ), and Strawberry Shortcake ( Strawberry Shortcake: The Sweet Dreams Movie ).
A resurgence of live action film adaptions of toy properties began in 2007 with the release of Transformers , the first film in what would become the Transformers film franchise. The first film in the G.I. Joe film franchise, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra , was released two years later. In 2008, Hasbro entered into a deal with Universal Pictures to make at least 4 films based on its brands and products. In 2012, the poor performance of the first film from this partnership, Battleship , caused other projects in development to be shelved or sold off to other studios. [3] The success of The Lego Movie in 2014 showed that even intellectual properties without an existing narrative, or even familiar characters, could be profitable and its success renewed the interest of toy companies and film studios in producing toy-related projects stuck in development hell. [4] [5]
On 3 November 2017, Hasbro Studios entered into a five-year production and distribution deal with Paramount Pictures to develop additional productions based on Hasbro brands. [6] In 2021, Mattel Films announced a development of 13 films in production based on Mattel toys and games, such as Hot Wheels, Magic 8 Ball, Masters of the Universe, Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots, Polly Pocket, View-Master, American Girl and Uno, as well as an original intellectual property in Christmas Balloon. [7] After being in development for over a decade, a live-action film adaptation of Barbie was announced by Warner Bros. Pictures with actress Margot Robbie cast as Barbie and Greta Gerwig directing. [7] [8] [9] Released on 21 July 2023, Barbie was the first live-action Barbie film after numerous computer-animated films and specials. [10] The film received critical acclaim and grossed more than $1 billion in worldwide box office sales, becoming the second highest-grossing film of 2023, the highest-grossing film of all time solely directed by a woman and from Warner Bros. in their centennial anniversary and the 25th highest-grossing film of all-time.
