It’s been a long, strange road gettingThe Little Princeonto American screens. A notable hit overseas through the end of last year, the animated adaptation of the beloved novel was set to premiere through Paramount Pictures, but the distributor dropped the film unexpectedly. Netflix picked it up quickly following Paramount’s big drop, but nothing much has been heard about what the plans were for the roll-out of the film on the streaming service until today.
Earlier today, Netflix debuted a brand new trailer for the film, which still looks amazing, and also set a release date for its premiere on the streaming platform (and in a limited theatrical run), which will begin on August 5th. The acquisition ofThe Little Princeshows cunning in the Netflix push to expand its brand into film where its deal withAdam Sandlerhas showed a severe lack of ingenuity, essentially looking for the most basic, unneeded way to get attention there is instead of looking to make their own stamp.
The Little Princerepresents the same side of the streaming platform that led them to pick upAdam Wingard’s impossibly anticipated adaptation of the animeDeath Note, as well asBong Joon-ho’s next project,Okja; there’s also new films byAngelina JolieandDavid Ayerin the pipeline, as well as a newBob Odenkirkcomedy. To a degree, I shouldnt be surprised that films as promising as these are being matched by new movies by Sandler andKevin James, but there was, for a moment, some hope that Netflix would push for something different than the majors. We’ll see how the next round of pick-ups go, but for now, I’m just waiting to see how this latest iteration ofThe Little Princecomes out.
Here’s the latest trailer forThe Little Prince:
Here’s the official synopsis for the film:
A little girl lives in a very grown-up world with her mother, who tries to prepare her for it. Her neighbor, the Aviator, introduces the girl to an extraordinary world where anything is possible, the world of the Little Prince.
