Peeps, the marshmallow treats that give the writers of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver nightmares, is reportedly getting the movie treatment. Wonder Street’s Christine and Mark Holder, who recently worked on the serious legal drama The Mauritanian, are producing an animated film about the candies, reports Deadline. The plan is to make a movie in the vein of Trolls and Smurfs.
Wonder Street picked up the film and television rights to Peeps, which are made by the Bethlehem, Pennsylvania-based Just Born, Inc. The film’s plot will be about a group of Peeps characters who will take a cross-country journey in order to attend the Peepfest celebration in Pennsylvania. There is no word on how the Peeps will make that journey without getting stuck to the road, but that is a challenge for writer David Goldblum to figure out. Goldblum is also executive producing with Wonder Street.
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“Peeps Chicks and Bunnies have been ingrained in American pop culture for nearly seven decades due to their instantly-recognizable shapes and fan-favorite Marshmallow taste, making them the perfect characters to bring to life on the big screen,” Keith Domalewski, Director of Marketing & Consumer Engagement at Just Born, said in a statement. “We hope the new Peeps film spreads sweetness to families across the country and provides inspiration for fans to express their ‘Peepsonality’ in new ways!”
Just Born makes about 2 billion Peeps treats a year. Its decision to get into the movie business follows recent headline-grabbing brand partnerships. Before Easter this year, the company announced a partnership with Pepsi to launch the unique Pepsi x Peeps flavor, which combines “the crisp, refreshing taste of PEPSI cola with the pillowy-soft and sweet Peeps Marshmallow flavor consumers love.” While this sounds like an April Fool’s Day joke, it was not. However, fans had to enter a contest between March 25 and March 31 to get the drink.
Wonder Street’s most recent production is The Mauritanian, which earned Jodie Foster the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in a movie. The film stars Tahar Rahim as Mohamedou Ould Slahi, who spent 14 years at Guantanamo Bay without a trial. Foster and Shailene Woodley played his attorneys. It was released to theaters in the U.S. on Feb. 12. It received five BAFTA Film Awards nominations, including Best Film.
