Cartoon Network is greenlit another remake of a property from its TV library. This time, it’s a more recent property that it will introduce to a brand new generation.
Deadline and Variety reported this week that Cartoon Network will officially reboot their billion-dollar Ben 10 franchise in a new animated series.
Cartoon Network Studios will develop the reboot for a fall 2016 premiere on its international channels, followed by a North American premiere in 2017. Ben 10 creators Man of Action will serve as executive producers an John Fang (Mixels, Generator Rex) will serve as supervising producer.
Plot details are under wraps, but the general basis is that the show will be retelling of the adventures of a 10-year-old Ben Tennyson, a boy who travels the country with Grandpa Max and his cousin Gwen during summer vacation. When Ben finds the mysterious Omnitrix, he gains access to a swath of alien powers, and uses them to fight alien (and sometimes non-alien) threats. Likewise, we are only told that the aliens we’ll see in the reboot are comprised of new additions and fan-favorites.
The original Ben 10 series premiered on Cartoon Network in January 2006. Almost immediately, it was met with high ratings and a dedicated fanbase, which turned Ben 10 into one of Cartoon Network’s most successful action-oriented properties. The show would later spawn three additional animated series (Ben 10 Alien Force, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien, Ben 10: Omniverse), one animated movie (Ben 10: Secret Of The Omnitrix), and two live-action movies (Ben 10: Race Against Time, Ben 10: Alien Swarm).
“We decided it was time to introduce Ben to a new generation of kids,” said Cartoon Network Chief Content Officer Rob Sorcher. He continues, “Ben 10 has been an overwhelming success story across all media platforms, and we know kids around the world will be eager to see the reinvention of this beloved character.”
Cartoon Network won’t just reinvent Ben’s character for a new audience. Sorcher also hinted that the show will be specifically targeted toward a generation that now get their entertainment through mobile devices.
“The last generation of kids were the first digital natives. This generation is the first mobile natives,” Sorcher said. He continued, “You’ll see that reflected in our content plan.”
At this point, it’s been almost a decade since the original Ben 10 premiered, so it makes sense that Cartoon Netowrk would want to update the franchise for the kids that weren’t around at that time of the original series and are most definitely not familiar with the history and mythology of this character.
While there will certainly be a range of opinions and feelings from longtime fans about this reboot, Cartoon Network has made it very clear (like with the new Powerpuff Girls reboot) that this version of Ben is for today’s generation.
What do you think? Do you have any thoughts on the Ben 10 reboot?
Edited by: Hannah Wilkes
