“Gasparín” will return to live-action with a series about his origins

The tender ghost Gasparín will return to television with an upcoming live-action series under the distribution of the American platform Peacock. Based on the character's classic animated adventures, this proposal aims to take a much darker direction and explores the protagonist's origin in a coming-of-age story. What was it like to be alive for him?

The television fiction will be set in a high school and takes on some more adult elements as well as titles such as Riverdale or The Hidden World of Sabrina (both based on comics and/or family-style programs). A Variety report describes the plot as follows: “When a new family arrives in the small town of Eternal Falls, Casper finds itself entangled in a mystery that uncovers dark secrets that have been buried for more than 100 years.”

Wu Kai-yu, creator of The Ghost Bride and recurring screenwriter of The Flash, will write and produce this new start of the friendly Gasparín on the small screen. In addition, it will be produced by UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, and DreamWorks Animation.

The most beloved ghost in television and film

Originally called Casper in English, this child ghost was created by Seymour Reit and Joe Oriolo in 1930. Both sold the rights to their creation for $200 to Famous Studios, which released two animated films between 1945 and 1959. The character was later purchased by Harvey Comics, the publishing house that published the comics since 1952. Due to his popularity, he was brought back to TV in five animated series, but his big moment happened in the cinema.

In the 1990s, Universal Pictures opted for a live-action film directed by Brad Silberling that would be produced by various names in the industry, including that of Steven Spielberg. With a script written based on the classic cartoon Gasparín the Friendly Ghost, the plot had a much more moving and profound feature than 2D animated titles, although without leaving the fun and fantastic.

This is how, in 1995, Gasparín hosted one of the sweetest love stories in film history. He falls in love with Kat, played by Christina Ricci, and in order to meet her, he arranges a whole plan for her father, James Harvey, to go to the haunted house he shares with his evil uncles. In the process, the man will have the arduous task of uncovering a mystery, while his daughter will spend the best moments of her adolescence next to the adorable ghost.

Currently, the rights to this entertainment franchise are authored by Classic Media, Dreamworks Animation and NBC Universal (a conglomerate to which Peacock belongs). Therefore, Gasparín's new live-action series will be launched by this streaming service and, obviously, will have no connection with the productions that were released in the past few years.

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