Columbia Pictures Acquires Geoff Rodkey Novel ‘We’re Not From Here’ From Will Gluck’s Olive Bridge, Mike Mitchell To Direct

Anthony D'Alessandro
·3 min read

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EXCLUSIVE: Will Gluck’s Olive Bridge Entertainment has sold the rights to Geoff Rodkey’s middle-grade novel We’re Not From Here to Columbia Pictures, Deadline can report.

The feature adaptation will be a family-focused hybrid live-action and animation film which Rodkey will adapt with Mike Mitchell (Trolls, The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part) directing and Gluck and Jodi Hildebrand of Olive Bridge Entertainment producing.

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The Crown Books published comedic book follows a family of humans who immigrate to an alien planet.

Rodkey is the Emmy-nominated screenwriter of the films Daddy Day Care, RV, The Shaggy Dog and Good Luck Charlie, It’s Christmas! He’s also the author of nine novels for middle-grade readers, including the New York Times bestselling Tapper Twins comedy series and the adventure-comedy trilogy The Chronicles of Egg. The first book in the series, Deadweather and Sunrise, was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in the U.K. and was an Amazon, Chicago Public Library, and Bank Street Center for Children’s Literature pick for “Best Book of the Year.” His forthcoming suburban-apocalypse novel Lights out in Lincolnwood will be published in summer 2021.

Mitchell most recently directed The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part and the hit animated feature Trolls which respectively grossed close to $200M and $347M at the global box office. He also contributed to the entire Shrek franchise and directed the final chapter, Shrek Forever After. Additional film directing credits include Sky High; Deuce Bigalow, Male Gigolo; Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked; and the live-action sequences for The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water. He has advised and consulted on such Dreamworks Animation movies as Penguins of Madagascar, Puss in Boots, and the Kung Fu Panda franchise, serving as executive producer on Kung Fu Panda 3.

Gluck recently directed the animated comedy Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway for Sony which is set for release on Jan. 15. The first chapter which he directed, Peter Rabbit, grossed over $350M WW. In 2014, Gluck released Annie, which he directed and co-wrote for Sony Pictures. Gluck received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song for “Opportunity” from the film, shared with Sia and Greg Kurstin. Previously, he directed the films Friends with Benefits; and Easy A, which won Best Comedy Movie at the Critics’ Choice Awards. He also produced About Last Night for Sony Pictures in 2014.

Additionally, Gluck runs the production company Olive Bridge Entertainment. Through Olive Bridge, Gluck, along with Richie Schwartz, is currently producing the 2020 DGA winner Encore! for Disney+, dramedy series Woke for Hulu, an adult animated comedy for Netflix, and Sneakerheads for Complex, among many other projects in development for traditional and streaming television.

Hildebrand is a producer and oversees the film side of Will Gluck’s Olive Bridge Entertainment. She has worked with Gluck since the launch of the label and is currently producing Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, and produced Peter Rabbit. Prior to Olive Bridge, she was a film production executive at Marvel Studios, developing Runaways and Ant-Man. Earlier in her career, Hildebrand was an executive at Sidney Kimmel Entertainment, working on features such as Lars and the Real Girl, Adventureland, and Charlie Bartlett.

Olive Bridge Entertainment is repped by UTA and Offer Weber Dern. Mitchell is represented by UTA and attorney Ken Richman. Rodkey is repped by UTA as an author and Richman.

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