Meet the Robinsons, an animated film that is loosely based on William Joyce's 1993 picture book A Day with Wilbur Robinson, will be released by Disney on March 30. The story follows a 12-year-old inventor who meets a mysterious stranger named Wilbur Robinson; the stranger whisks him away to a world where anything is possible—the future. Tom Selleck, Laurie Metcalf, Angela Bassett and Adam West have all lent their voices to the movie.
Joyce is no stranger to Hollywood. He got his start there on the 1997 live-action movie Buddy, where he wrote the screenplay, designed the sets and acted the parts of two minor characters. Since then Joyce has produced two television series, Rolie Polie Olie and George Shrinks, both based on his picture books, and he produced and designed the animated film Robots.
HarperCollins, Joyce's longtime publisher, is tying in to the release of Meet the Robinsons in a big way. Debuting later this month are a number of Meet the Robinsons titles, including The Chapter Book by Jasmine Jones, The Junior Novel by Irene Trimble, and The Movie Storybook by Barbara Bazaldua. 8x8 titles are Me, Myself and the Bowler Hat Guy by Annie Auerbach, illustrated by Ron Husband; Keep Moving Forward by Katherine Emmons, illustrated by Ron Husband; Where Are Grandpa's Teeth? by Emmons and Husband; and Who Wants Some Pizza? by Erin Rade, illustrated by Len Smith. I Can Read titles are Journey to the Future by Apple Jordan and A Family for Lewis by Sadie Chesterfield. Rounding out the tie-ins are four coloring and activity books, a paint book and a reusable sticker book. Coming in August is A Day with Wilbur Robinson by Joyce, an enhanced version of the classic with additional art and a revised story.
