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Sony's Live-Action Smurfs Movie Finds the Perfect Director

by Alex Billington
July 8, 2009

The Smurfs are finally, after 28 years, headed for the big screen. Columbia Pictures has hired Raja Gosnell to direct the 3D live-action / animation hybrid that has been in development for a while. Gosnell's previous films include Big Momma's House, Scooby-Doo, and Beverly Hills Chihuahua. I obviously don't like any of those movies, but for this he's a perfect fit, as he's got a lot of experience working with hybrid CGI creations. They won't say what the story is about just yet, but this does make me wonder if the Smurfs will be involved in our real human world in some way, or if they'lll just be CGI creations placed into live-action backgrounds.

Jordan Kerner, who has been developing the project for as a producer the past seven years, said: "With Raja coming aboard, we now have a brilliant director who has proven time and again that he has a deft touch in blending the worlds of physical comedy and honest emotion with both live action and photo-real animated characters. Our three-apple-high heroes are in good hands, and we feel absolutely positively Smurfy to be working with him." Sony is already pushing this into development now for a December of 2010 release. All you favorite characters like Papa Smurf, Smurfette and the villainous Gargamel will all be in it.

Filed under Movie News, Opinions

From around the web:

Dave Lister, JMC

This is bullshit.
Xerxex

no, No, NOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!! this was the stupidest show ever crafted!!! I would rather see a live action version of Tom and Jerry, than this!!!!! AND I Would despise a Tom and Jerry L-A flick!!!!!!
Moviegimp

I wonder if this will be live-action / animation like Beowulf. Maybe the Smurfs will be animated and only Gargamel will be a real actor like the Chipmunk movies. They could use little people for the Smurfs. Tall Smurfs are not going to make any sense whatsoever. Whatever they do though, probably suck.
oblong

alex you are really worrying us with this pro live action smurf talk!!!!! The Smurfs are f'ing stupid!!!!
dave13

...w...t...f... I hate hollywood. and with that track record... this movie will suck worse than Scooby Doo, and the creation of that made me cry. I never figured out how they were able to make so many wonderful animated movies of Scooby Doo and so completely screw up the live action. this series was awesome, is awesome. Tom and Jerry would also be an awful film. oy.
Klausey

Smurfs rock...and because of that I'm not sure I want to take the risk of having someone ruin that?
http://matoth.blogspot.com wertygol

Then, when the movie will be out, can mix with the Finding Nemo renders and make The snorkles Movie.
DoomCanoe

hahaha who crapped out this awful idea?
Wylles

G- Force 2 and a half...
http://dlmentertainment.blogspot.com/ DLM Entertainment

Here's a little experiment for you. Go to your kitchen and grab 3 apples (or if you're a slovenly beast like me who won't eat an apple unless it has the word pie after it, go to your local grocery store. Take said apples and stack them up 3 high. Now. Do you think they're still cute and smurfy (whatever the fuck that means?) No, 3 apples high, shirtless and blue and running around causing havoc and shit is downright fucking creepy. Now to add to the mix, remember the cat Azriel? (It shames me that I remember the fucking cat's name in the first place, not to mention that piece of missing ear) Remember how big the cat was in relation to the smurfs? How fucking big is that cat? This is all too creepy and now my hurts brain. I gotta lie down.
Xerxex

Alex how can you even stomach to talk about this!? I grew up on Bugs and Daffy, Wily E. Coyote and Road Runner, then the fucking Smurfs showed up and ruined the remaining years of my childhood, and now they want to ruin my adulthood by bringing this terrible franchise to the big screen!!! That going over the line! This is worse than Uwe Boll directing another movie!!!! I'd rather have Fran Drescher read War and Peace over a loud speaker than watch the Smurfs on a fucking big screen!!!!!!!
Robbie

What the.. How will these people look? Blue-painted people with white frikin' cook-hats?!
frenchbob

Smurfs are called Schtroumpf in french, and the original comics were quiet amazing, with lots of jokes and references to society which are not possible to translate ... like Tintin or Astérix in English, they lack of the good jokes there are in french ... difficult to translate ... which is why I suppose this movie will be not very good ...
bozoconnors

a little late for this aren't we?