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Entertainment

27th Nov 2018

Netflix announces original Roald Dahl ‘story universe’ animated series

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, The Twits and many more will be coming to Netflix

Rich Cooper

The stories of Roald Dahl, one of the most beloved children’s authors of all time, will be coming to Netflix

The streaming giant announced that “a brand new Roald Dahl story universe” is soon coming to the platform.

“Willy Wonka and the Oompa-Loompas are joining The BFG, Matilda, The Twits, and a host of other iconic characters who have all found a brand new home together on Netflix,” a statement said.

“Netflix and The Roald Dahl Story Company jointly announced today that Netflix is extending the Roald Dahl universe of stories for global family audiences with an exclusive new slate of original animated event series, based on the books from the acclaimed and award-winning author’s best-selling library, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, The Twits, and many other beloved titles.”

It looks as though a huge amount of Dahl’s back catalogue will be making its way to Netflix. The company tweeted out an incomplete list of all the titles that it would be reimagining.

Netflix said that it will “bring together the highest quality creative, visual, and writing teams to extend the stories in this first-of-its-kind slate of premium animated event series,” and that it intends to remain faithful to the “quintessential spirit and tone of Dahl.”

Production on the first as-yet-unknown Netflix Dahl series is expected to commence in 2019.

“Netflix is known for innovative and high-quality storytelling,” Gideon Simeloff, Strategy Director for The Roald Dahl Story Company said of the deal. “There is no other place in the world that can deliver animated entertainment for the whole family at such quality and scale.”

“Immersing ourselves in the extraordinary worlds of Roald Dahl stories has been an honor and a massive amount of fun,” commented Melissa Cobb, Vice President of Kids & Family Content at Netflix.

“We are grateful for the trust the Roald Dahl Story Company and the Dahl family have placed in our team to deliver more moments of shared joy to families around the world.”