A new live-action Popeye movie is in the works.
Per Variety, Chernin Entertainment and King Features are working on a new live-action Popeye the Sailor Man movie. Variety reports that it will be a “big-budget feature,” though no plot details or casting information have been revealed at this time.
Who is writing the new live-action Popeye movie?
Michael Caleo is attached to write the script for the forthcoming film. Caleo previously worked on Sexy Beast, the British crime drama that premiered on Paramount+ in January 2024. He also co-wrote the screenplay for 2013’s The Family, which starred Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer, and penned an episode of HBO’s The Sopranos.
Created by Elzie Crisler Segar, Popeye first appeared in a 1929 comic strip called Thimble Theater. The comic was turned into a series of theatrical cartoon shorts for Paramount Pictures, and the character has since gone on to be featured in comic books, video games, advertisements, and more.
Robert Altman directed a live-action Popeye movie in 1980. Produced by Paramount Pictures and Walt Disney Productions, it starred Robin Willams as Popeye, Shelley Duvall as Olive Oyl, Paul L. Smith as Bluto, Paul Dooley as J. Wellington Wimpy, Richard Libertini as George W. Geezil, and Ray Walston as Poopdeck Pappy.
While it received negative reviews at the time of its release, Popeye’s reputation has gradually improved over the years, with Paul Thomas Anderson being a noted fan of the film. Popeye made $49.8 million at the worldwide box office off of a budget of approximately $20 million.
Sony Pictures Animation announced an animated Popeye movie was in the works in 2010; however, the project never came to fruition and was ultimately canceled.
A release date for Chernin Entertainment and King Features’s Popeye movie has not yet been set.
