For a while there, toy lines seemed to be all the rage for big budget movies. Paramount Pictures produced Transformers, GI Joe and Universal released Battleship. One of the projects that got lost in the hustle was an adaptation of Mattel’s Max Steel toy line. Based around a teenage boy who leads a dual life as the superhero Max Steel, a character aided by nanotech robotic probes (or alien technology depending on the interpretation), Paramount intended the produce the project with Taylor Lautner as the titular star.
Now, according to Deadline, the project is back on the fast track under the stewardship of Dolphin Entertainment and Open Road with the goal of meeting a 2014 release date.
This new Max Steel is to be directed by Stewart Hendler (Sorority Row) who made waves for producing the well-received H+ digital series for Dolphin and Warner Brothers. Christopher Yost (Thor: The Dark World) has already been hired to pen the screenplay.
Max Steel first hit pop culture in 2000 with a three-season run produced by Netter Digital Entertainment. Later Mainframe took over the series. Max Steel has since been marketed with nine direct-to-DVD animated films released almost exclusively in Latin America where they have been big sellers. Disney XD recently premiered a new version of the series earlier this year.