TVSquad

MTV has development deals in place for a few flicks which would air first on the network before hitting DVD and then, based on public response, the cinema. These projects, one of which is being developed by Jay Kogen, a writer for The Simpsons and Fraiser, have not been officially greenlit by the studio.

This is not an entirely new idea for MTV. Recently, MTV announced a DVD movie based on its popular My Super Sweet 16 series.

If you live in the Boston area and were afraid you might miss out on the premiere of Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters, you can rest easy. Despite Mayor Thomas M. Menino asking theaters not to screen the movie after the publicity stunt turned "bomb" scare that resulted in Turner paying two million in damages to the city, and the resignation of the head of Cartoon Network, local theaters have decided to go ahead and show the movie anyway.

After months of teasing and speculation, we finally learned that, yes, there would indeed be an Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie. Now Variety is reporting that the movie is slated for a March release, opening in over 800 theaters. The movie will center on the origin of the anthropomorphic trio of Meatwad, Frylock and Master Shake, a team of talking food who fight crime and solve mysteries, except they really do neither of those things. Trust me, if the concept alone confuses you, you're probably not even reading this anyway. Oh yeah, and the antagonist in the movie is an evil piece of exercise equipment. Fans of Bruce "Don't Call Me Ash" Campbell can look forward to hearing their hero's voice in the upcoming film, along with Rush drummer Neil Peart.

[via Toon Zone]

Warner Home Video has become the official distributor of not only the original theatrical Popeye animated shorts produced by both Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios, but also Popeye's TV series such as The Continuing Adventures of Popeye and Popeye and Son. The result is hundreds of animated shorts featuring the lovable but unintelligible sailor man getting their first legitimate release since the character first appeared on movie screens in the early 1930s. Popeye actually started out even earlier as a breakout character in E.C. Segar's "Thimble Theater" comic strip. Currently, Warner Home Video is working on restoring the cartoons, but no word on exactly when the DVDs will be available, other than some time in 2007. I just hope they release the theatrical shorts separately from the TV shows, as I'm not quite as interested in his made-for-TV stuff. Nevertheless, this is a very cool thing, and fans should be thrilled.