By Allison Watkinson
TLL Reporter
King Features Syndicate is developing a new animated film inspired by the interactive children’s comic strip, Slylock Fox.
King Features has also renewed its representation agreement for the property, which was previously known as Slylock Fox and Comics for Kids.
The film will follow the adventures of the Sherlock Holmes inspired detective, Slylock Fox, and his sidekick Max Mouse, as they test their skills against eccentric villains.
Evan Daugherty is on board to write and produce the Slylock Fox film, and Chromosphere, a design and animation studio, has joined the project for art direction. C.J. Kettler, the president of King Features, will serve as executive producer.
“Young readers around the world look forward to solving the fun, interactive brain teasers in Slylock Fox every day and we are thrilled to bring these iconic characters to life on the big screen, ” said Kettler. “Evan Daugherty and Chromosphere Studios both do incredible work and with this partnership we will be able to create an engaging and meaningful story that captures the true spirit of the comic’s mysterious adventures.”
The Slylock Fox interactive comic strip was created by Bob Weber Jr., and focuses on teaching children to use facts, logic, and cognitive thinking skills to solve mysteries.
“It has been a true joy creating Slylock Fox over the years to bring readers of the comic pages something fun and different with interactive activities centered around core education themes,” said Bob Weber Jr, creator of Slylock Fox.
“We look forward to the next Slylock Fox project and know that King Features, along with Chromosphere and Evan Daugherty, will create an exciting, animated adaptation that is sure to captivate our current fans and also reach a whole new audience.”
Slylock Fox is one of several licensed properties that King Features is currently developing for television and film. King Features recently released an animated adaptation of the global video game franchise Cuphead, in collaboration with Netflix. The Cuphead Show! made its streaming debut this February and dropped a new batch of episodes in August.
King Features is a well-known producer and distributor of intellectual properties and an industry leader in character licensing and franchise development. The company distributes comics, columns, editorial cartoons and puzzles across multiple platforms and content providers around the globe.
King Features is part of Hearst Newspapers, which publishes 24 dailies and 52 weeklies, including the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle and Times Union.