Remember when The LEGO Movie came out back in 2014 and was all the rage? The film was bright, funny, original and felt completely refreshing. It was also a huge hit, it felt like Warner Bros had created a new franchise that could really shake up the world of animation.
And while the first movie did spawn a couple more hits like The LEGO Batman Movie and The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part, the series never really took off like some predicted. You have to remember that the franchise had access to all WB properties (hence Batman and the Justice League’s appearances in the movies). When The LEGO Movie came out, many anticipated spin-offs featuring dozens upon dozens of WB characters. LEGO Looney Toons, LEGO Harry Potter, LEGO Scooby-Doo or LEGO Wizard of Oz — the possibilities were endless. But instead there were just a few LEGO movies and not much else. They were hits but the world of animation was most definitely not shaken up.
So it was no surprise that LEGO and Warner Bros went their separate ways back in 2019. Around the time that the split was announced, rumors rumbled about a new deal between LEGO and Universal. That pact is now official. LEGO and Universal just finalized a five-year deal to create new LEGO films.
Say goodbye to LEGO Batman and other Warner Bros characters. And now think of all the Universal mainstays that can become tiny brick figures. Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, Shrek, E.T. — the list goes on. Perhaps Universal will find better ways to utilize LEGO.
In a world where every studio wants as many franchises as possible, this is a big win for Universal. Kids movies are solid bets in Hollywood and Universal knows that, they stand to make a lot of money with this deal. Now it is all about Universal taking the opportunity and building upon the LEGO brand. If there’s anything you can build upon, it’s LEGO.