When Disney takes on a fairy tale, its version tends to become the definitive version: Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, etc. At the D23 Expo, the company announced it is now working on what it hopes will be the definitive version of Jack and the Beanstalk, called Gigantic.
Directed by Nathan Greno and produced by Dorothy McKim, the film looks like a swashbuckling adventure version of the classic fairy tale. It’s set in Spain during the Age of Discovery, and Jack, a grown adult explorer, will make the greatest discovery of all time: a whole world of giants. One of the main giants will be a 60-foot 11-year-old girl giant called Inma. When she meets Jack, she thinks he’s a toy and play with him. Of course, that’s just part of the story but their relationship will be at the heart of the film.
Beyond that, it’ll feature music by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, the award-winning songwriters behind Frozen. They sang a very early version of a song which will be sung by Inma as she starts playing with her “little man:” “You can toss him in the air, you can comb his air, my itty bitty man, I love my little man.” It has lots and lots of jokes, like the Frozen song “Love is an Open Door.”
Here’s more info the official press release from Disney:
“GIGANTIC” TAKES ROOT – Things are looking up at Walt Disney Animation Studios – way up. “Gigantic,” Disney’s unique take on “Jack and the Beanstalk,” will feature music from Oscar®-winning songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, who greeted D23 EXPO fans in signature style—in song—alongside director Nathan Greno (“Tangled”) and producer Dorothy McKim (“Get A Horse!”). Set in Spain during the Age of Exploration, Disney’s “Gigantic” follows adventure-seeker Jack as he discovers a world of giants hidden within the clouds. He hatches a grand plan with Inma, a 60-foot-tall, 11-year-old girl, and agrees to help her find her way home. But he doesn’t account for her super-sized personality—and who knew giants were so down to earth? “Gigantic” hits theaters in 2018.
We’ll have more from the D23 Expo soon.
Image via Disney’s official Twitter.