Over several decades already, My Little Pony has had a tremendous cultural impact since it began in the 1980s, and while it started as a pipeline of colorful little toy ponies that was created by Hasbro, it has since expanded in a variety of mediums such as animated TV series, merchandise, and movies, including a passionate fanbase. Its most recent conception called My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, aired from 2010 to 2019, has cultivated a large following from young and older audiences alike. Its message about friendship, personal growth, and inclusivity resonated with a lot of people, praising the well-rounded characters and great storytelling experience coming from the medium.
Generally, My Little Pony is known to be unique and colorful as its style and memorable characters are the highlight of every episode and film they showcase on. In every iteration, they strive to incorporate themes of teamwork, empathy, and kindness into the mix, which educates younger audiences on the value of those virtues. Needless to say, because of the high impact this franchise has had, it commands a strong presence in popular culture as various parodies online appear to poke fun at My Little Pony while also entertaining and informing other people of its nature.
However, while it has encountered several criticisms, we cannot deny the importance that it has had on the popular culture space as it resonates a multi-generational crossover of entertainment and cultural impact.
What if, however, My Little Pony has had a live-action adaptation movie? Since Disney has been poking fun at their versions of live-action adaptations of their beloved classics, it might not be too far into the future that the Hasbro company, the owner of My Little Pony, realizes the potential that it can make if the movie is done right.
The Recent Success of Animated Films
Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog are two great animated films that come to mind when talking about successful animated movies. Grossing over a billion dollars in box office earnings, Super Mario, for example, has proved that people will enjoy a bit of nostalgia and good animation sketches if it triggers a sort of emotional attachment to the franchise. Though not exactly a live-action adaptation, Super Mario could’ve easily gained the success it had even if it has sprinkled a bit of live-action elements due to its global appeal, especially with leveraging the status and talent of among the best American actors in recent memory under its belt such as Chris Pratt and Jack Black.
However, if there were a live-action version of My Little Pony or even a crossover to any of the animated shows, they can easily learn the elements from these recent successes and hire the right people to make a great movie experience for kids and older adults alike. This would, of course, require great writers at the helm who are passionate about this franchise and creating a cinematic universe out of it.
A film they can certainly take notes from is The Spiderverse franchise which received overwhelmingly positive praise for its animation and storytelling. If Super Mario had even an inch of a great story like Spider-Man, it would’ve beaten the likes of Avatar or Avengers Endgame as the number one spot for the most box office earnings ever. However, it will take a little bit of investment and risk-taking from Hasbro to pull this off, but based on market data, it’s clear that the audiences are interested in animated films as well as live-action adaptations that are good.
In general, movies that are good and leave a lasting impact on people have a positive outcome regardless of the box office earnings. My Little Pony has proven this to be the case with a cult-like following fanbase on its tail. If they are going to make a live-action adaptation, they better make it for the fans because they have been supporting the franchise since the dawn of time.
Casting Choices
The casting choices for voice actors and live-actions roles would entirely depend on personal choices, but generally, if we were to cast some of them, it would have to be these actors and actresses.
First off, Tara Strong is a top-notch voice actress recognized for her work as Twilight Sparkle in the animated My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic series. It would bring a certain degree of continuity and familiarity to continue to voice her own character from the series in the hypothetical live-action film.
Second, Emily Blunt could bring a certain nuance and charisma to the main characters such as Rainbow Dash or Applejack. On the other hand, Kristen Bell has shown her talents in projects like Frozen, so it’s a no-brainer to bring her ability along as Pinkie Pie, for example.
Emma Stone showed a great degree of acting skills in a range of genres, and her ability to show strength and vulnerability could work as an advantage to acting as Fluttershy or Rarity. Also, Tom Hanks can be another great choice as he can bring warmth and genuineness into his voice performances such as Discord, for example.
Finally, Dwayne Johnson is a safe and great choice due to his larger-than-life presence. He could play like Shining Armor or Big Macintosh, which makes him interesting.
Conclusions
Regardless of the outcome, the release of a live action My Little Pony will surely make fans curious about the franchise, and those who don’t know it might just become intrigued, provided that the film is done right. The only way to entice people at this point is to make a film intriguing with nuanced and fleshed-out story beats and hooking narratives that leave people satisfied.