Netflix Agrees To Bring ‘Animal Farm’ To Life With Andy Serkis And Matt Reeves

It appears that last week’s deal to bring Andy Serkis‘ directorial debut “Mowgli” to Netflix was just the start of an ongoing relationship between the filmmaker and streaming service. Happy with its purchase of “Mowgli,” Netflix has now given Serkis the opportunity to work on a passion project that has eluded him for years — “Animal Farm.”

Deadline is reporting that Netflix has teamed up with Andy Serkis to bring a live-action/motion-capture version of the George Orwell classic novel to the streaming service, with the actor/filmmaker on board to direct. And joining Serkis behind the scenes as producers are Matt Reeves and long-time Serkis collaborator John Cavendish.

George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” tells the story of a group of animals, living on a farm, naturally, who rebel against their human masters and gain their independence. The novel is steeped in political allegory as the animals form their version of the perfect society.

“We are incredibly excited to have finally found the perfect creative home in Netflix, for this extraordinarily zeitgeist work by George Orwell,” Serkis said in a statement. “On top of that, to be re-united with my great friend Matt Reeves, with his acute sensitivity, storytelling intelligence and honesty, and command in this realm, is to have the very best scenario for our long held passion to bring this fable alive.”

As the filmmaker mentions, he has previously worked with Matt Reeves on the critically-acclaimed blockbusters “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” and “War for the Planet of the Apes.” Now, Reeves will take a back seat and help Serkis bring his vision to life.

“Andy is such an incredible artist — he is truly a force of nature, and a beautiful soul. To be able to work with him again and with Jonathan and Netflix to see Orwell’s classic tale brought to life in a totally new and exciting way is an absolute dream,” said Reeves.

As for any changes that Serkis, Cavendish, and Reeves have planned for the novel, the main one seems to be the time period. Cavendish explains that the intention is to bring “’Animal Farm’ to the screen in a thoroughly contemporary fashion, which will highlight the staggering relevance today of the satirical and dramatic power of Orwell’s re-imagined classic.”

No release date is set, and with a large amount of mo-cap required to bring this film to life, we probably won’t be expecting to see it anytime soon.