Toto The Ninja Cat Gets 52-Episode Animated Series
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- Studiocanal and Superprod are co-producing a 52-episode action-comedy animated series based on Dermot O'Leary's six-book 'Toto the Ninja Cat' franchise, launching under Studiocanal's new Studiocanal Stories adaptations label overseen by Sarah Reese Geffroy.
- Nick Ostler and Mark Huckerby, the Emmy-winning 'Danger Mouse' writing duo, are attached as head writers, while O'Leary executive produces alongside Dee Koppang O'Leary, a director on Disney+'s 'Rivals.'
- The titular Toto is a partially sighted cat whose visual impairment becomes a ninja superpower, a character O'Leary has said he based on a real blind moggy he adopted in Italy; the books are illustrated by Nick East.
- The source attests the Toto franchise has published six books over the past decade, been translated into 19 languages, sold more than 500,000 English-language copies, spawned a stage play that premiered earlier this year, and will add a seventh title later this year.
- Studiocanal Worldwide TV MD M-K Kennedy positioned Toto alongside Studiocanal's other family properties Paddington and Miffy, while the news lands just ahead of the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, with Studiocanal Kids & Family handling worldwide sales.
- The source notes Hachette Children's Group manages TV and film rights for the series, and the adaptation pre-dates Hachette Livre and Studiocanal's recently announced strategic book-to-screen joint venture called On Screen.
Why it matters: Studiocanal is using a bankable Dermot O'Leary franchise — 500,000+ English-language copies sold and 19 language translations — to anchor its newly launched Studiocanal Stories adaptations label, while pre-dating its broader Hachette book-to-screen JV, signaling the conglomerate's intent to fast-track existing IP before that wider pipeline activates.
