Hasbro Will Probably Reboot Power Rangers

Hasbro has acquired the rights to several Saban brands, the most notable of these being Power Rangers. In a deal said to be worth $522 million, Hasbro is now expected to move forward with growing the Power Rangers brand, or "unlocking its full potential" as it was put in a statement.Power Rangers turns 25 years old this year, and was rebooted in 2017 when Lionsgate brought a new Power Rangers movie to the big screen. The movie tried to update the rangers to fit modern times, but had troubles at the box office and with critics. Even so, fans of the movie have been hoping for a sequel, and if things had gone differently, they might have gotten one; there were originally 5 sequels planned. But with the Hasbro deal now in place, that seems increasingly unlikely. If anything, Hasbro will go for a reboot of the entire franchise once again.

This Page: 2017's Power Rangers Was a Critical And Commercial Failure

2017's Power Rangers Was a Critical And Commercial Failure

There was a lot of excitement surrounding the release of Power Rangers last year. Rebooted with a fresh, young, exciting cast, Power Rangers tried to combine teen drama with its usual campy take on the superhero genre.The film definitely has its fans, but the low box office and poor critical reviews darken its hopes of a sequel. The performances from the cast members were hit and miss, highlighted by RJ Cyler, who impressed fans and critics alike with his portrayal of the Blue Ranger, Billy, who has Autism. Ultimately, though, the small, dedicated fanbase was not enough to make the movie a financial success. Power Rangers grossed just $142.3 million worldwide against a $100 million budget. That means, after accounting for marketing costs and factoring out the theaters' cut, Power Rangers lost millions of dollars. Critics were not smitten, either. Power Rangers was dismissed for lacking both the campy fun of the original TV show and the blockbuster pull of larger superhero franchises.

In the time since, all of the cast have expressed an interest to reprise their roles, and it's certainly something fans of the movie would like to see. Power Rangers also had a post-credit scene that set up a sequel nicely, by hinting at the arrival of the fan-favorite Green Ranger. There was even some (controversial) talk of the Green Ranger being female. There was a little more money seen through toy sales, and a sequel was in consideration at one point, but we're talking about the Power Rangers. Toy sales will follow any incarnation of the franchise, and Hasbro is going to want that incarnation to be one they build from the ground up.Ultimately, though, it's hard to see Hasbro making a sequel to a movie that was a critical and commercial failure after investing half a billion dollars acquiring the franchise when they could just reboot completely with a fresh slate.

Hasbro's Taking Their Movie Properties Seriously

In November 2017, Hasbro and Paramount signed a deal which would see the studio develop movies based on many of Hasbro's popular brands such as M.A.S.K., Micronauts, and ROM: Spaceknight. The deal both extended and intensified an already long-standing partnership between the two that has seen them team up for five Transformers movies, plus two G.I. Joe films. They're also working together on the upcoming Bumblebee movie, starring Hailee Steinfeld and John Cena, set for release at the end of 2018. Transformers: The Last Knight, made the least of all the Transformers movies, but even so, it pulled a respectable worldwide gross of $605 million; certainly a blockbuster akin to what Power Rangers aspired to be.

Paramount is also actively moving forward with two other movie adaptations of Hasbro brands. A ROM the Spaceknight movie is being written by Zak Penn (Ready Player One), while a M.A.S.K. movie - which is sure to please many - already has F. Gary Gray attached to direct. It's a sure sign from Hasbro and Paramount that they're taking the development of these movies very seriously; they know the potential that these popular toy brands have on the big screen, and in turn, Hasbro will be more than aware of the potential Power Rangers could have, in the right hands.

Hasbro's acquisition of Saban also opens up the possibility of more toy-based movies, since the company now owns My Pet Monster, Popples, Julius Jr., Luna Petunia, and Treehouse Detectives, though admittedly those brands are aimed at the very young who would be unlikely to sit through a whole feature length film.

So, given that Power Rangers is the jewel in this acquisition crown, are Hasbro likely to give a sequel to a movie that wasn't successful in the first place, or are they likely to get Paramount on board to reboot the franchise and turn it into something with box office potential similar to the Transformers franchise?

A Reboot Makes Sense

Power Rangers was not a terrible movie, but it just didn't grab the movie going public outside of a very small existing fanbase. A sequel continuing a story that no one watched (and few liked) in the first place isn't going to convince the movie going public to take Power Rangers to their hearts. A soft reboot gives the potential to have the original movie cast returning, but again, that's not going to mean too much to too many. A hard reboot, however, offers so much potential, that it seems foolish to consider any other option. The opportunity exists now to take a completely different angle with a Power Rangers movie, and to either bring it back more inline with the TV show, or to go down a different route altogether.

Hasbro would perhaps also be wise to focus on pushing Power Rangers through other mediums for the time being, such as getting a good, solid TV reboot going and then bringing out a range of toys based on that. From there, if the market exists, they could move back to the big screen with a new cast and new storylines. With a M.A.S.K. movie and ROM: Spaceknight in development, and others likely to come, Paramount and Hasbro even have the potential to create a new cinematic universe of Hasbro properties, and we all know how much movie goers like to see different well-known characters meeting up on the big screen.