Amazon MGM Is Reimagining a Beloved Robin Williams Classic With a Modern Twist

Well, here's one I definitely didn't have on my 2024 bingo card: FernGully: The Last Rainforest is coming back, and this time, it's going live-action. No, that is not a typo. Amazon MGM Studios has decided that what we need right now is a new crack at the very '90s animated environmental fable that once featured Robin Williams as a hyperactive, conspiracy-crazed bat. If you're thinking, 'Wait, but... really?' Yeah, same.

Who's Behind the Remake?

Amazon MGM has put Marielle Heller in the director's chair—she's the one behind A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (that Mr. Rogers movie) and Nightbitch. Heller's not just directing; she’s also producing, alongside Stacey Sher, Susan Ursitti-Sheinberg, Jon Sheinberg, Matt Feige, and Leah Holzer. Moonli Singha is in as an executive producer. If you're wondering about the cast or just how closely they'll stick to the original script, no word on that front yet. As far as we know, that's all still up in the rainforest mist.

So, Let's Remember FernGully

Originally released in 1992, FernGully was an animated adventure set deep in the Australian rainforest. The plot? Fairies accidentally shrink a human logger, Zak, down to their size. He teams up with them to save their home from more logging and the very unsubtle personification of pollution, Hexxus (voiced by a deliciously evil Tim Curry). Robin Williams, in peak zany mode, voiced Batty Koda—a fruit bat permanently frazzled thanks to human experimentation. It's a fever dream, but an earnest one.

The OG Cast (and That Surprising Depth Chart)

• Robin Williams as Batty Koda
• Samantha Mathis, Jonathan Ward, Christian Slater, Grace Zabriskie, Douglas Seale, Geoffrey Blake, Robert Pastorelli
• Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong (as, yes, comical goons)
• Tone Lōc, Townsend Coleman, Brian Cummings, Danny Mann
• Music and voice cameos from some impressive names: Elton John, Sheena Easton, Raffi, and of course Tim Curry

The film was Bill Kroyer’s first shot at directing and written by Jim Cox, pulling from Diana Young’s FernGully stories. While it didn’t start out as a major hit at the box office, it grew a solid following once it landed on home video—where, frankly, a lot of us first found it getting rerun on cable. There was even a sequel in 1998 called FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue, but... no Williams, no Curry, and as far as cultural impact goes, let’s just say it vanished into the undergrowth pretty quickly.

What’s Next?

Details are sketchy. We don’t know yet if this remake is going to follow the original plot point by point, or try something new (and probably risk enraging whoever still holds the Batty Koda plushies from their childhood). No casting news, no release date. But given Heller's track record, it’s at least in interesting hands.

As Heller put it:

'I grew up loving the original FernGully and I am thrilled to bring this story to a new generation with all the magic, weirdness, and heart intact.'

Nice to see someone admitting the movie is a little weird—because, honestly, that's what made FernGully stand out in the era of Disney dominance.

So, get ready for fairies, environmental angst, and (maybe) a new take on Batty’s rants about human idiocy. And if you’re old enough to remember seeing this in elementary school (likely as an excuse for your teacher to catch some grading time), you’ll probably get a weird jolt of nostalgia when this thing finally lands.