The silver screen will turn a different color next month when Harold and the Purple Crayon makes its theatrical debut on August 2. The new Sony Pictures movie is a live-action family adventure/comedy directed by Carlos Saldanha, with a screenplay by David Guion and Michael Handelman and based on the book by Crockett Johnson. It is produced by John Davis and executive produced by Jeremy Stein and Jenny Hinkey.

This release marks the first feature-length film adaptation of the classic picture book, first published in 1955. The original spawned eight additional titles: Harold’s Fairy Tale (1956), Harold’s Trip to the Sky (1957), Harold at the North Pole (1958), Harold’s Circus (1959), A Picture for Harold’s Room (1960), Harold’s ABC (1963), Harold and His Friends: A Harold and the Purple Crayon Treasury (2003) and Adventures of Harold and His Friends (2005), as well as an activity book and an adult title, Purple Crayons: The Art of Drawing a Life by Ross Ellenhorn.

Harold was initially adapted for the small screen in 1959 in a seven-minute animated film, released by Weston Wood Studios. Two subsequent shorts, A Picture for Harold’s Room and Harold’s Fairy Tale, were filmed in 1971 and 1974, respectively, and directed by Gene Deitch. All three were packaged together and aired on Captain Kangaroo. Harold commanded an even greater television presence in 2001 when HBO featured a 13-episode series based on the book that earned a Daytime Emmy Award.

Purple Reign

In the upcoming movie, Zachary Levi (Shazam!) stars as a grown-up version of the title character who makes inanimate objects come to life on the page using his signature crayon. Once Harold eventually draws himself out of the book—and into the real world—he and his friends must work together to ensure that imagination and creativity are never compromised. The cast includes Lil Rel Howery (Get Out), Benjamin Bottani (Leo), Jemaine Clement (Rio) and Tanya Reynolds (Sex Education), with Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2) and Zooey Deschanel (New Girl).

Saldanha was intrigued by the prospect of bringing Harold into an entirely new format and at the same time filling a void in his own childhood. “As a kid growing up in Brazil, I missed out on reading Harold and the Purple Crayon, but I had the joy of sharing its magic with each of my four children who loved Harold’s adventures and his limitless creativity,” he told PW. “When the opportunity came up to bring it to the big screen, the story felt like a reflection of my own journey, as both Harold and I are making the leap from animation to live-action.”

Harold also signifies a departure from Saldanha’s previous films, namely Ice Age, Rio, and Ferdinand, all of which centered around animal characters. The 6’ 4’’ Levi gives what Saldanha acknowledged as the ability to “bring a childlike wonder to the character.” The director also credits Guion and Handelman for their lively writing, while staying true to Harold’s character traits. “Our top priorities were capturing what it would be like to see Harold’s drawings come to life in our world and to preserve his curiosity, bravery, and endless inventiveness.”

HarperCollins Children’s Books is gearing up for the film’s release with social media promotions, activity pages, and Harold-branded, purple-only crayon boxes. The publisher will also re-release “Remember Reading,” its Harold and the Purple Crayon podcast episode, during which author-illustrators Chris Van Allsburg and Brian Pinkney discuss the book’s impact on their work.

“We’re thrilled that the film will help put a spotlight on one of the gems of our backlist,” said Lisa DiSarro, senior marketing director at HCCB. And with Johnson’s story celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2025, the movie’s release will help to get the party started.