Well, another reboot is just around the corner, and this time it’s the highly beloved Christmas/horror film series Gremlins. The last film was over 30 years ago with Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990), so it’s about time that the cutesy creatures are back. With a whole new generation obsessed with superheroes and action-packed entertainment, will Gremlins still impact the new audience? OG fans can only hope.
The new animation fantasy series Gremlins: Secrets of Mogwai is set to be released on HBO Max and Cartoon Network. The series will be a prequel to the original 1984 and 1990 films and will focus on the backstory of Gizmo. Before the series had even premiered, it was already renewed for a second season in February 2021. If all goes well for the first season, a new generation of gremlins are about to appear, or one can hope.
The upcoming animated series created by Tze Chun will have a new kid star who befriends Gizmo this time around. The series takes place in 1920s Shanghai, East China, and will be about a young 10-year-old boy named Sam Wing (Izaac Wang), who is the older man owner of Gizmo in the original films. In this prequel, he meets Gizmo, who is all alone without his family. Sam promises him he will take him home. Along with a teenage thief named Elle (Gabrielle Nevaeh Green), the three of them embark on a treacherous journey along the Chinese countryside. During the 10-episode season, the group will experience a number of issues: fighting monsters, dangerous cliffs, and even ghostly spirits.
Gremlins: Secrets of Mogwai wouldn’t be a true gremlins series without the use of evil gremlins as well. While the three of them are on the journey to return Gizmo to his family, they run into both a large group of evil gremlins, as well as a somewhat immoral industrialist.
The original and highly loved Gremlins was released in 1984 and was directed by Joe Dante and written by Chris Columbus (The Goonies, Home Alone). The film is about Randall Peltzer (Hoyt Axton), a struggling salesman trying to find the perfect Christmas gift for his son Billy (Zach Galligan). When he travels to Chinatown to find the ultimate Christmas present, he finds a ‘mogwai,’ a cute and adorable creature, looking like a mix between a teddy bear and a Furby toy. The owner of the mogwai, Wing, tells him his name is Gizmo, and Randall thinks it is the perfect present for Billy.
The man selling Gizmo is obviously a bit reluctant and nervous to sell such a particular creature to him. He warns him about the three rules to never do: never let Gizmo be in sunlight, don't get him wet, and never feed him after midnight. All turns south in this beloved classic, as almost immediately Billy does everything he was told not to do and an army of evil gremlins terrorize him, Gizmo, and the town on Christmas Eve.
The movie was an instant hit, garnering an 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. The famous film was followed by a sequel six years later with Gremlins 2: The New Batch. After Gizmo’s owner Wing dies, Gizmo is the subject of terrible scientific experiments. Billy and his wife-to-be Kate (Phoebe Cates) rescue him, but again, an evil army of Gremlins return to torment the streets of New York City. The film did remarkably well for a sequel, garnering 71% on Rotten Tomatoes, which is not terrible for a follow-up movie.
Ever since the release of the sequel, a third film was wished by fans and audiences everywhere. For the past three decades, Columbus stated that a third film would happen and that it would be a direct sequel to the 1984 film. Columbus even said that he wrote the script, but still, 30 years later, there is no third film. So, why is a prequel series happening instead? Hopefully, the series will answer questions, and maybe if the show takes off, a third film will finally be in the works.
With the protagonist of the show being Sam Wing, it will be interesting to see the origin story of how Gizmo met his owner ‘Wing’. It will also be intriguing to see an animated version of the adored mogwai, and how the creators will modernize the show while still keeping the original magic. It won’t be the horror-comedy that fans are used to, as this appears to be more kid-friendly, but hopefully, there's something there for original fans as well.
The show will showcase a well-versed cast including James Hong (Mulan), Matthew Rhys (The Americans), and instead of Howie Mandel voicing Gizmo, newcomer A. J. Locascio (Voltron: Legendary Defender) will be taking over the role. Gremlins: Secrets of Mogwai is set to be released sometime in 2022. Gizmo is officially back; hopefully, a new generation of Gremlins fans will emerge.