It’s Friday, everything is awesome, and The LEGO Movie sequel has located its director: Mike Mitchell.
The Hollywood Reporter has the scoop, confirming that Mitchell, best known for his recent work on DreamWorks’ animation Trolls, now steps into the director’s chair left vacant by Rob Schrab, who parted ways with Warner Bros. citing “creative differences.” Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the original brains behind Warner’s 2014 sleeper hit, recently turned in the sequel’s first script before Disney and the Han Solo anthology movie came calling. Since then, BoJack Horseman creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg has hashed out another draft, though it remains to be seen whether Mitchell will fine-tune any aspects of the screenplay now that he’s officially on board to direct. Meanwhile, Dan Lin and Roy Lee will produce alongside Miller and Lord.
With credits on Shrek Forever After, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked and The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, Mike Mitchell knows a thing or two about animated sequels. His latest effort, Trolls, scored $338 million worldwide, leading Paramount to entertain the idea of a potential follow-up. Nothing to report on that front just yet, but stay tuned for more.
The LEGO Movie 2 is slated for release on February 8th, 2019. Long before revisiting the denizens of Bricksburg, Warner Bros. will redirect attention toward Will Arnett’s Caped Crusader in time for The LEGO Batman Movie. It’ll swoop into theaters next Friday, February 10th, before The LEGO Ninjago Movie spins Warner’s animated franchise out in a whole new direction on September 22nd, 2017.