What would 2020 be without a bizarre introspective film about a big-ass purple dinosaur?!
Back in October, Mattel Films announced Daniel Kaluuya would be producing a live-action film based on Barney the Dinosaur. The popular purple dinosaur made his TV debut in 1992 with the premiere of Barney & Friends.
“Barney was a ubiquitous figure in many of our childhoods, then he disappeared into the shadows, left misunderstood,” Kaluuya said about the upcoming film at the time. “We’re excited to explore this compelling modern-day hero and see if his message of ‘I love you, you love me’ can stand the test of time.”
Now, I actually thought this movie had been shelved since I hadn’t heard much else about it, but it looks like Kaluuya is pretty damn passionate about this. In fact, he recently told Entertainment Weekly exactly why he wanted to make this film in an interview.
“Barney taught us, ‘I love you, you love me. Won’t you say you love me too?’ That’s one of the first songs I remember, and what happens when that isn’t true?” Kaluuya mused. “I thought that was really heartbreaking. I have no idea why but it feels like that makes sense. It feels like there’s something unexpected that can be poignant but optimistic. Especially at this time now, I think that’s really, really needed.”
OK, that went dark pretty quickly. Now I’m picturing the movie trailer voice guy (R.I.P. Don LaFontaine) introducing the following concept to the audience:
In a world...where a jolly giant purple dinosaur gives all of his love with the expectation that you will return it. Find out what happens when that expectation isn’t met. *ominous soundbite* Barney the Dinosaur’s happy family may not be so happy...after all. From the star of GET OUT and straight from your imagination…BARNEY.
I really don’t know why this is happening, but it is. What I do know is that when it does come out and I’m in the position to interview Kaluuya for this film, I will undoubtedly and happily troll him with Barney trivia.