Magic: The Gathering fans have some very good news to savour, as Netflix has announced that they're joining forces with Joe and Anthony Russo (Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame), Wizards of the Coast, and Hasbro's Allspark Animation to develop a series based on the fantasy franchise.
This will feature "an all new storyline" and will expand on the story of the Planeswalkers, with the Russo brothers serving as executive producers. Creative talent from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and more will also be contributing.
Octopie will oversee production of the series, with Todd Makurath, Eric Calderon, and Dave Newberg as producers. Mike Larocca and Isaac Krauss will be executive producers, while Henry Gilroy and Jose Molina will be lead writers and co-executive producers. Yoriaki Mochizuki will be supervising director and co-executive producer, and animation will be handled by Bardel Entertainment.
"We have been huge fans and players of Magic: The Gathering for as long as it has been around, so being able to help bring these stories to life through animation is a true passion project for us," said Joe and Anthony Russo.
"Working with Joe and Anthony, Wizards of the Coast, and Netflix on such a universally cherished brand is a real highlight for our studio," added Isaac Krauss, CEO of Octopie. "Our goal is to not only tell a compelling story leveraging Magic: The Gathering's incredible body of work, but to also push the medium and perception of storytelling through animation. This series will cross the genres of suspenseful thriller, horror, and drama with deeply developed characters the likes of which are not often seen in animation."
The future looks bright for Netflix, as The Witcher series is on the way; Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance has a new trailer; and they've just closed a deal with Dark Horse to produce more TV and film projects.
How well can Magic: The Gathering translate to TV?