When it comes to book-to-movie adaptations, the works of Dr. Suess (real name Theodor Geisel) have had kind of a rough time of it, and his weird and wonderful worlds are seemingly a much better fit as short form installments on the small screen. As such, fans of all ages should be pleased to find out that Netflix is going into development on a series based on the classic children’s book Green Eggs and Ham. Each episode will center on someone reading the book roughly 30 times. Just kidding.
Netflix has ordered up 13 episodes of Green Eggs and Ham, which will center on the character Sam-I-Am and an inventor as they set out to have adventures. I could paraphrase the plotline from the official announcement, but that would ruin all the fun. Check it out.
In this richly animated production,a 13-episode introduction,standoffish inventor (Guy, by name)and Sam-I-Am of worldwide fame,embark on a cross-country tripthat tests the limits of their friendship.As they learn to try new things,they find out what adventure brings.Of course they also get to eatthat famous green and tasty treat!
Sounds interesting, right? But the quality rests on the brains behind it, and Green Eggs and Ham is being developed by writer Jared Stern, the guy who co-wrote the scripts to such half-hearted comedies as The Watch and The Internship. (He also wrote the script for Ken Jeong’s upcoming ABC pilot Dr. Ken.) His work in animation is a bit more sound, though, as he’s written material for films like Bolt, The Princess and the Frog and Wreck-It Ralph. His next project is The LEGO Movie Sequel, and we can’t wait to see how that plays out.
As far as Seuss adaptations go, we’ve had the whimsically awkward live-action How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and the uncomfortably awkward live-action The Cat in the Hat. On the animated feature front, there’s been Horton Hears a Who and The Lorax, both of which did an okay job at building the stories of the books. And then on the small screen, we have the proper version of The Grinch, along with the decent Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss and the youth-friendly Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!. The world could always use more.
Published in 1960, Green Eggs and Ham is one of the most popular children’s books of all time, and Netflix is one of the most popular forms of watching TV shows these days. Will two rights indeed make a right? Or will two rights be a big fright? I’ll keep practicing my writing while we wait for the show’s premiere date to be announced.
