Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson will direct a movie-musical remake of The Aristocats for Disney, according to a report in Deadline. The project will reportedly reimagine the 1970 animated film as a blend of live-action and CGI. Thompson will oversee music for the upcoming release, with the screenplay set to be penned by Will Gluck and playwright Keith Bunin.
The film is the latest foray into musical theatre for the Roots cofounder and six-time Grammy winner. Thompson was a co-producer of Hamilton's Original Broadway Cast album, and is currently at work on a Broadway-aimed Soul Train musical that will make its world premiere in San Francisco later this year. Thompson also was on the producing team for both the 2009 and 2012 Broadway runs of Fela!
The film follows a group of French cats poised to inherit a fortune from their owner, Madame Adelaide Bonfamille. Kidnapped in an attempt to snatch the inheritance, the kitties get help from a lowly alley cat. The original release is not one of Disney's more music-heavy films, with just a handful of songs, some by Mary Poppins tunesmiths Richard and Robert Sherman.
