It was only a matter of time, given this item’s popularity, as Hollywood is now officially developing a feature film based on the Chinese toy craze of Labubu (owned by the Chinese retailer Pop Mart). The interesting pairing will see Sony Pictures teaming up with British filmmaker Paul King to turn the cute monster-like collectible accessory into a movie.
The news hailing from THR adds that while King will also produce the in-the-works pic with Department M (“The Christophers” and the recent remake of the domestic thriller “The Hand that Rocks the Cradle”), and Wenxin She (“Wish Dragon,” “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”). The project, in the very early stages, is still in need of a screenwriter, as Sony is working closely with Pop Mart on the gestating adaptation.
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Sony, which recently made “Kpop Demon Hunters” that ended up at Netflix and became a massive phenomenon itself in 2025, may have a beat on what to actually do with Labubu in the cinematic space and how to get a global audience behind it, not just a domestic one.
However, it’s unknown at this point if King and Sony are aiming to make an animated film or a hybrid project similar to King’s affectionate “Paddington” movies that have their wonderful following, as the director was able to bring the lovable bear beaming with charm and personality to life despite being a CGI construct.
A few years back, King was able to help Warner Bros. with their “Wonka” reboot starring Timothée Chalamet as a young iteration of the inventive candy maker and was recently announced for a “Prince Charming” (from the “Cinderella” story) film in the works at Walt Disney Studios with Chris Hemsworth expected to star, so there is an obvious expectation that King could bring a level of whimsical and an element of cinematic magic to a project focused on Labubu.
In a world where director Joe Dante and Warner Bros. are reviving their own little creature franchise with “Gremlins 3” (the mischievous Mogwai, who metamorphose into evil little Gremlins if they eat after midnight, also happen to originate from China), it’ll be interesting to see how this Labubu movie could differ from that outing heading to screens on November 19, 2027.
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
