Ryan Reynolds Developing New Feature Film Based On This Disney Theme Park Attraction
By Jeffrey Harris on October 15, 2022 at 5:00 AM EDT
It looks like "Deadpool 3" isn't the only "Disney" project that actor and producer Ryan Reynolds is working on right now. Per The Hollywood Reporter, Reynolds is working with filmmaker Qui Nguyen to adapt Disney Parks' Society of Explorers and Adventures (S.E.A.) as a new feature film.
Reynolds and Nguyen are developing the property at Reynolds' Maximum Effort production company.
Ryan Reynolds Joining Disney's Society Of Explorers And Adventurers
THR reports Nguyen is attached to write a planned live-action feature, with Reynolds on board to produce along with his Maximum Effort team. Nguyen is also the co-director and writer of the upcoming, similarly-themed, Disney CG-animated feature, "Strange World."
Interestingly enough, Ron Moore ("For All Mankind," "Battlestar Galactica") is also working on another project for Disney inspired by S.E.A. Moore's project is separate from Nguyen and Reynolds' version, and is said to be a series on Disney+. The series would be set in a "Magic Kingdom Universe," where Disney's theme park lands, characters, attractions, and classic films all exist in an alternate dimension.
THR notes that Nguyen's feature pitch involves bringing the mythology of S.E.A. into the present day, along with adding a supernatural element to its history, along with new characters. The fictional organization first appeared in Fortress Explorations for Tokyo DisneySea. It's also featured in Hong Kong Disneyland's Mystic Manor.
S.E.A. was first founded in 1538 in Italy, consisting of various members, explorers, scientists, and adventurers all across the globe. References to S.E.A. have been retroactively added to Disney theme park attractions all over the world, and a whole alternative, hidden history has been built for the group.
Author Julie Tagawa recently began writing a series of books based on Walt Disney Parks' S.E.A. lore, with "Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl." The next book in the action-adventure series, "Shinji Takashi: Into the Hart of the Storm," arrives in April 2023.
https://twitter.com/DisneyParks/status/1462071961467572224
According to THR, Disney is hoping to launch a franchise with the new feature from Nguyen and Reynolds.
What's Next For Reynolds And Nguyen At Disney
Nguyen's upcoming feature, "Strange World," arrives in theaters on November 23. He co-directed the feature with Don Hall ("Big Hero 6," "Moana," "Raya and the Last Dragon").
The CG-animated action-adventure comedy film showcases a family of explorers who is navigating an uncharted, and dangerous land. Family man Searcher Clade (Jake Gyllenhaal) goes to the strange land where he's reunited with his long-lost father, Jaeger Clade (Dennis Quade). It also features the voices of Jaboukie Young-White, Lucy Liu, and Gabrielle Union.
Meanwhile, Reynolds is currently working on "Deadpool 3" for Disney's Marvel Studios. The film will star both Reynolds, who returns once again as Marvel's Merc With a Mouth Wade Wilson aka Deadpool, and Hugh Jackman, who once again reprises his iconic role of Wolverine for the big screen. Shawn Levy is directing the film, which arrives in theaters on November 8, 2024.
Reynolds also stars opposite Will Ferrell and Octavia Spencer in their upcoming musical take on Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," titled "Spirited." "Spirited" hits theaters on November 11 and will stream on Apple TV+ on November 18.
