Last year,Power Rangershit theaters, but wasn’t the smash hit that rights holder Saban or studio Lionsgate was hoping for. The film,which reportedly cost $100 million, only made $142 million worldwide. Whether that means there’s not much interest inPower Rangersas a movie or people just weren’t on board with this iteration is up for debate. Either way, Hasbro believes that thePower Rangersbrand still has value and they’ve just paid quite a lot of money for it.
According toDeadline, Hasbro has acquiredPower Rangersfrom Saban along with “other entertainment brands includingMy Pet Monster, Popples, Julius Jr., Luna PetuniaandTreehouse Detectivesin a cash-and-stock pact valued at $522 million.” NewPower Rangersproducts from Hasbro will be in stores starting in spring 2019.
The president of Hasbro released the following statement:
“Power Rangers is an iconic brand built on a heritage of great storytelling and merchandising with tremendous upside potential when fully executed across Hasbro’s Brand Blueprint,” said Brian Goldner, Hasbro’s chairman and CEO, in announcing the deal. “Shortly after entering into our licensing arrangement, it became clear that now was the time to begin investing in unlocking Power Rangers’ full potential. We see significant opportunity for Power Rangers across our entire Brand Blueprint, including toys and games, consumer products, digital gaming and entertainment, as well as geographically throughout our global retail footprint.”
So what does that mean for anotherPower Rangersmovie? More likely than not, it means that if one ever happens, it will be a total reboot that pulls the property more in line with Hasbro’s vision for the brand. The same goes with the current iteration of the TV show, although there have been so many differentPower Rangersseries that I doubt yet another version will ruffle too many feathers.
What do you want to see in a newPower Rangersfranchise? Should Hasbro attempt to cross it over with their other properties likeTransformers? Sound off in the comments!
