Last week, animation creative Eric Rogers got fans talking by revealing on X/Twitter that he had created, written, and showrun 52 episodes of an animated Micronauts series that was completed back in January 2020.
There’s just one problem: Hasbro, which produced the so-far unseen animated show based on the popular ‘70s toy line, still hasn’t let him know what's happening with that series since locking that last episode more than four years ago. And in an era where completed projects like Batgirl have gotten the axe allegedly for tax write-offs, it’s not a huge leap to assume that it’s been scrapped altogether.
MICRONAUTS. 52 half hours fully produced. I was the co-creator/EP/head writer. Ask Hasbro what they’re doing with it because no one there will tell me. We locked that last episode in January 2020. https://t.co/lvCCpVmBMe
— Eric Rogers, lost on ANGRY BIRDS MYSTERY ISLAND (@EricRogersHere) July 8, 2024
“By the way… I just want ONE PERSON at Hasbro to tell me what their plan is,” Rogers wrote. “It’s almost 5 years since we finished. Tell me you canned it. It’s a tax write off. You lost it on the train like the Beastie Boys did with HOT SAUCE COMMITTEE PT 1. But… nothing? Yeah… no.”
In response to a fan, Rogers wrote elsewhere, “I think they Batgirl’d us.”
IGN has spoken with sources close to the situation, however, and learned that there's a slight possibility the animated series might still see the light of day. According to sources familiar with the decision-making process at Hasbro, the toy company is hoping to package the completed animated series with a potential live-action Micronauts film and TV show in the future.
IGN has reached out to Hasbro for comment.
That doesn’t mean an animated Micronauts series will be headed to TV screens or streaming services anytime soon. Rogers even referenced a “movie that they could never make happen” in response to one person saying there was a massive Micronauts banner hanging in the Paramount warehouse while he worked there.
What it does mean, however, is that the animated series hasn’t been completely canned – at least not yet – like Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt (and seemingly Coyote vs. Acme) before it. It also signals that Hasbro is still hoping to launch some sort of Micronauts film and TV franchise to shop out to potential distributors.
It certainly seems like there’s a hunger for it. Some expressed shock that a company would pay for 52 episodes of a series only to seemingly let it collect dust, while others – like Deadpool co-creator Fabian Nicieza – hinted that leaking some of that completed series “can’t hurt.”
I hear from a friend that accidentally leaking footage can't hurt... pic.twitter.com/emBCJjFyTa
— FabianNicieza (@FabianNicieza) July 8, 2024
Others who worked on the series, too, expressed a desire for answers.
“This was my first Art Directing gig starting back in 2016,” wrote Melissa Malone on X/Twitter. “We were really proud of what we made – and we made a lot of episodes! It was a pretty big scale production – and it has yet to air.”
The Long Journey to a Micronauts Adaptation
The Micronauts toy line, made of action figures around 3 inches in height, was manufactured by Mego Corporation from 1976-80, but was discontinued in 1980 before Mego dissolved in 1982. Despite the toy line’s short life, it’s retained popularity over the decades, inspiring comic books and various attempts at big- and small-screen adaptations.
Way back in 2009, Hasbro hinted that J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot production company was in negotiations to produce a live-action Micronauts film. Much more recently, in 2019, How to Train Your Dragon filmmaker Dean DeBlois was attached to a live-action Micronauts film, but Paramount pulled it from its June 4, 2021 release date in 2020, with no public updates since.
The news of an animated series first came up in 2018, being developed by then-Hasbro subsidiary Boulder Media Limited. However, Hasbro has seen various internal shuffles between then and now, with Boulder being sold to Princess Media in 2022. Hasbro’s Allspark Animation banner, meanwhile, was absorbed as part of the company’s acquisition of Entertainment One in 2019; Hasbro sold eOne's film and TV businesses to Lionsgate in 2023.
So while it’s not completely clear where Rogers’ animated series stands in the wake of all that internal change, according to our sources, it’s not dead yet. Time – and the admittedly fickle winds of Hollywood development – will tell.
Thumbnail credit: Marvel Comics
Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she's not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.
