Children's Books That Should Be Movies
By Melissa Hunter
With "Where the Wild Things Are" opening today after a long-anticipated release, we got to thinking -- are there ANY children's books left that haven't been made into awesome movies?
While Hollywood seems to have scraped the bottom of the fairy tale barrel, there are but a few classic books that have yet to hit the silver screen. And let's be real -- who reads real live books anymore?
Here are our picks for the best kids' books that have yet to be made into movies, and the actors who should play the parts. You can thank us later, uninspired studio execs.
10. "The BFG" starring Sir Ian McKellen
Ian's resemblance to the Big Friendly Giant from the Roald Dahl classic is undeniable and who could play the gentle grandfather-like giant better? This story has only been brought to life through animation, but with the advances of CGI, surely this could be done live action. And throwing a knighted actor into the mix could really class up the genre.
9. "Eloise" starring Elle Fanning
The tale of the whippersnapper who lives in the Plaza Hotel in New York with her nanny and pug dog would be the most stupidly adorable movie we've seen in a while. And really, what people need right now is more stupidly adorable things in their lives.
Dakota's baby sister Elle looks the part and has already proven she can live up to her big sis' legacy ... even at the age of 11. She's got that wild-eyed, sassy look, too, which would be perfect for the firey Eloise and her no-bullsh-- err, no-bull-poop attitude.
8. "Captain Underpants" starring Woody Harrelson
A newer book series, "Captain Underpants" revolves around a principal who is hypnotized by 4th graders and becomes a superhero in quite possibly the raddest costume ever -- tighty-whiteys and a cape.
Woody could nail this role, not only for his, err, egghead look, but who could better rock briefs and still be a badass superhero? No one beats Woody -- clothed or otherwise. Plus, he's got to get a superhero franchise going sometime soon. The guy is way late to the game.
7. "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" starring Abigail Breslin
This book is a rite of passage for any young girl who is *ahem* becoming a woman. I think reading this is now a legal requirement before purchasing your first training bra.
So, who could play the angst-ridden, awkward yet confident tween? The go-to awkward yet confident tween movie star Abigail Breslin, obvs.
If she could snag an Oscar nod for "Little Miss Sunshine," you best believe she'll be taking home the gold when the Academy sees her do the "We must, we must, we must increase our bust" exercise flawlessly.
6. "The Little Prince" starring Kingston Rossdale
This book transports young and old to the unique universe of a young prince and the journeys he takes to mysterious planets in his solar system. Now if that isn't the definition of movie magic, I don't know what is.
And OK, so maybe Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale's son isn't officially an actor, but he's been around cameras long enough that he seems to be a natural. And he's basically grown up as an unofficial prince, so he'll be able to relate. But mostly, we want to cast him because he's downright adorable. I defy you to argue against his ridiculous degree of cuteness.
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5. "Everyone Poops" starring Will Ferrell
The book that taught every child that everyone, um, poops is none other than this classic tale of # 2s and the creatures that poop them. There are very few actors in the biz who could carry a 90-minute movie about excrement and make it passable for children, but Ferrell has proven his ability to entertain both kids and adults with hours of scatalogical humor like no other. And plus, no one will judge you when you crap your pants laughing.
4. "Amelia Bedelia" starring Isla Fisher
The adventures of the bumbling, misunderstood maid Amelia Bedelia would be a perfect Isla Fisher rom-com vehicle. Amelia has a special knack for messing up due to her over-literalization of every task assigned (like making a sponge cake out of sponges). Bright-eyed, rosy cheeked Isla could easily pull of the physical comedy required for such a cutesy slapstick genre.
3. "Where's Waldo?" starring Andy Samberg
The epic journeys of this conspicuously camouflaged character practically demands to be translated into cinema. And Andy Samberg would be perfect as the nerdy, jovial character. The guy really could fit in with any crowd. I'm thinking some sort of geeky spy who has access to a time machine.
But really, so many questions could be answered about the mysterious Waldo. How does he get from caveman times to South Beach and into outer space all in one book? How does he remain so refreshed and jolly through every journey? And how, oh how, does it still take me a solid hour to find him on a page of my nephew's book? Damn you and your stealthy ways, Waldo!
2. "Miss Nelson is Missing" starring Nicole Kidman
One of my personal favorites is the story where the sweet Miss Nelson is replaced by the evil Viola Swamp (who turns out to be Miss Nelson in costume ... umm, spoiler alert?).
This is a role any A-list actress would drool over, but no one could play it like Nicole. She convincingly plays sweet ladies and ice queens and has a tendency to die her hair every week anyway. Besides, she's got a background in prosthetic noses from "The Hours." This could be her revival, and maybe make her *gasp!* likable again.
1. "Green Eggs and Ham" starring Sean Penn & Johnny Depp
Many a Dr. Seuss story has made it to the silver screen, but why hasn't the arguably most beloved Seuss tale made the leap yet? Probably because they haven't locked down Sean and Johnny.
Sean would be perfect as the unnamed curmudgeon who refuses to try green eggs and ham, while naturally Johnny would play the wacky, mentally unstable Sam-I-Am (not Sean -- ohh, the irony). Sure, the book doesn't have much of a "plot" per se, but these two guys, with the help of an equally wacky director (paging Tim Burton), would turn this kiddie classic into trippy cinematic gold.
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