Disney’s investment in live-action films recently has brought tremendous box office success with Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland and Sam Raimi’s Oz: The Great and Powerful, while Maleficent is set to hit theaters next year. Now, Disney is in pre-production for a 101 Dalmatians spin-off focused on the villain Cruella De Vil.
Bringing Disney classics from animation to live-action on the big screen is nothing new for Disney. The studio filmed a live action version of the classic 101 Dalmatians in 1996 and followed the film’s success with a sequel, 102 Dalmatians, in 2000, both starring Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil. Sources say Disney has hired screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna (The Devil Wears Prada) for the live-action movie titled Cruella. McKenna also wrote the script for the live action Disney film Cinderella, which is currently in production and planned for a 2015 theater release.
Cruella will be a spin off from the 101 Dalmatians franchise and will focus on the villain, Cruella De Vil. The film’s plot is being kept under wraps for now, but sources say Glenn Close is on board as an executive producer. There is no word yet if she will reprise her role as the infamous villain.
