Ah, old school toy crazes are a funny thing, don't you think? Remember Beanie Babies, Cabbage Patch Kids, and Tickle Me Elmo? Heh, I've got a quick story for you about that little red menace. At the time of its release, I actually found a Tickle Me Elmo buried in a pile of other stuffed animals in a local Toys "R" Us. Upon pulling the giggling monster out of the assortment of fur and patchwork, a wide-eyed woman seized the doll from my hands and ran off with it, cackling all the while. I'm not kidding, she literally snatched it from my hands and made off with it like some Black Friday bandit on a bender. I just stood there, speechless, and more than a little disappointed that I'd missed my opportunity to resell the cursed thing for far more money than my little Velcro wallet could hold.
In news that is not related to my childhood trauma, Universal and Dreamworks Animation have announced via their Twitter account that a sequel to TROLLS is officially underway. Additionally, it's being reported that both Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake will return as the characters Poppy and Branch for what will no doubt be a colorful and musical adventure of hair-raising proportions. Did you see what I just did there? Yeah, you know you love a good pun. Anyway, the film already has a set release date scheduled for April 10, 2020. Oh, and it's also worth noting that the director of the original movie, Mike Mitchell, will not be returning for the sequel as he will be busy filming THE LEGO MOVIE sequel, which is set to build its way into theaters on February 8, 2019.
The first film in the series, TROLLS, was considered to be a major hit at the box office with a total of $339.5 million in returns since its November exit from theaters. The musical action-adventure has gone on to make even more money after being released for the home market. In recent TROLLS-related news, the film scored an Oscar nomination at this year's very entertaining ceremony for Best Song thanks to the upbeat tune "Can't Stop the Feeling".
Obviously, the release of TROLLS 2 is a number of years away, which will give parents plenty of time to steel themselves for yet another adventure with the wild-haired toys come to life on the big screen. In the meantime, if you're feeling spicy, you can sing along to the first film in the series on Digital, DVD, and Blu-Ray formats right now.