David Guion & Michael Handelman Tapped To Pen Amazon MGM Adaptation Of Beverly Cleary’s ‘The Mouse And The Motorcycle’

EXCLUSIVE: David Guion and Michael Handelman (Harold and the Purple Crayon) have been tapped to script The Mouse and the Motorcycle, a live-action/CGI hybrid based on the novel from beloved children’s author Beverly Cleary, in development at Amazon MGM Studios.

Originally published by HarperCollins in 1965, The Mouse and the Motorcycle is the first book in a trilogy that has sold 20 million copies. The story follows the once-in-a-lifetime friendship between a mouse and a boy who both yearn for adventure and bond over a toy motorcycle that whirs to life during a stay at a beautiful inn. We’re told that the feature take will be an elevated adaptation made for a mass audience.

Producers are Hobie Films’ David Hoberman (Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers, Wonder) and Caroline Fraser of HarperCollins Productions (Carmen Sandiego, The Oregon Trail). Guion, Handelman, and Julie Meschko will executive produce.

No stranger to children’s fare, Guion and Handelman most recently scripted a live-action/animated take on the popular children’s book Harold and the Purple Crayon, which Sony is releasing on August 2nd. Previously, the duo penned Francis Lawrence’s Netflix fantasy adventure pic Slumberland, starring Jason Momoa, as well as Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, and the Paul Rudd-Steve Carell comedy Dinner for Schmucks. The writing partners met doing improv at Yale and later formed the comedy group Circus Maximus in New York City.

One of America’s most beloved authors, whose books have sold 90 million copies, Cleary’s characters, including Beezus and Ramona Quimby, Henry Huggins and Ralph S. Mouse, have delighted children for generations. Her 1984 novel Dear Mr. Henshaw earned her a Newbery Medal, with Ramona Quimby, Age 8 and Ramona and her Father being named Newbery Honor Books. Cleary was also the recipient of the American Library Association’s Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, presented to her in recognition of her lasting contribution to children’s literature.

Hobie Films is represented by WME. Guion and Handelman are repped by UTA. David Wienir of HarperCollins Productions represented the book rights for the Cleary Estate and HarperCollins.