Disney is looking to keep Woody and Buzz in the family. No, not by making another Toy Story film (though the shorts are on their way), but by casting the actors who voice them, also known as Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, in the long-gestating live-action movie version of Jungle Cruise.
The Mouse House first announced its intention to turn the ride into a film back in 2006, when Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest was raking in the cash. Back then, Alfred Gough and Miles Milar were working on a closely guarded concept that apparently featured action, adventure and a 20th century setting.
Now? Well, the plotline is still under wrapped, but the action-adventure element remains in place and, according to the Heat Vision Blog, it’ll boast “unique aspects that will make it more than just a straight-up adventure”. Shrek’s Roger SH Schulman has been brought aboard to craft a new draft with Hanks and Allen in mind. Hanks would play a family man taking a trip, while Allen will be the boat’s captain.
Jungle Cruise, which has been part of Disneyland since the park opened in 1955, famously saw current Disney creative/parks honcho John Lasseter as one of its boat commanders back when he was a speccy teenager earning cash. Its narrative includes the chatty commander leading his party through a hazardous voyage filled with dangerous natives, piranhas and hippos. Can it work as a film? Well, the **Pirates **adventures proved it could be done, and the casting of a live-action Woody and Buzz in what sound like perfect roles for each should be good. Colour us hopeful.