‘Nimona’ Movie Canceled By Disney Lives Again at Netflix
When Disney acquired 20th Century Fox and all of its subsidiaries, fans mostly focused on the new movies they would supposedly get as a result; the X-Men in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and so forth. But the merger cost a lot of people their jobs — and wound up scuttling a lot of projects that Fox had in development that Disney ultimately did not want to produce.
One such example is Nimona, the animated feature based on the award-winning and best-selling comic series by ND Stevenson. The film was in development for years at Blue Sky, Fox’s animation division, but when Disney acquired Fox, they started delaying and delaying the project even though by some accounts in the press the movie was deep into production by the time Disney came into the picture. Originally slated for release in early 2020, Nimona was ultimately canceled in early 2021 when Disney completely shut down the Blue Sky animation studios.
A little over a year later, though, Nimona lives again, now at Netflix. Stevenson made the announcement on their Twitter page writing, “Nimon’s always been a spunky little story that just wouldn’t stop. She’s a fighter...but she’s also got some really awesome people fighting for her. I am excited out of my mind to announce that THE NIMONA MOVIE IS ALIVE... coming at you in 2023 from Annapurna and Netflix.”
A press release from Netflix states that their work on the movie started “early last year” and that their version will star Chloe Grace Moretz as Nimona and Riz Ahmed as Ballister Boldheart. Here is the official synopsis for the film:
A knight is framed for a crime he didn't commit and the only person who can help him prove his innocence is Nimona, a shape-shifting teen who might also be a monster he's sworn to kill. Set in a techno-medieval world unlike anything animation has tackled before, this is a story about the labels we assign to people and the shapeshifter who refuses to be defined by anyone.
The Nimona movie will premiere on Netflix in 2023.