Break out the marmalade sandwiches! Paddington Bear, the beloved talking bear voiced by Ben Wishaw, is returning to theaters in the near future as the StudioCanal family-friendly franchise has tasked the brilliant comedic writer Armando Iannucci to help pen the script for a gestating “Paddington 4,” and director Dougal Wilson is also in talks to return, after helming “Paddington in Peru.”
That exciting and surprising sequel update hails from Variety, as a fourth installment would cement that the studio is moving ahead without Paul King in the director’s chair, who helmed the first two installments in the trilogy and helped crack a story for “Paddington in Peru.” King has been busy working on other films, such as the Timothee Chalamet-led “Wonka,” and has been recruited by Sony for their Labubu film.
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Iannucci, the creator of the acclaimed Emmy-winning HBO Max series “Veep” and writer/director of the period dark comedy “The Death of Stalin,” will co-write alongside creative cohort Simon Blackwell, after the two previously worked together on ‘Veep” and “In The Thick of It.” A great creative landing, as the writer is known for his cheeky and smart comedic beats for the IP that has earned over $800 million at the global box office and has resonated with families.
Franchise producer Rosie Alison remains for the upcoming sequel for Heyday Films after first hatching the idea of giving the beloved literary and cartoon character the “live-action” treatment.
We’ll keep our fingers crossed that they’ll try to get talent connected to Iannucci, like “Veep” star Julia Louis-Dreyfus in “Paddington 4,” in a similar way they’ve added folks like Hugh Grant, Antonio Banderas, and Olivia Colman into the films in the past.
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
