Another fantasy book series is being adapted into a movie? Shock! Awe! Variety reports that Canadian production company Minds Eye Entertainment is partnering with Moving Pictures Media and Red Sky Entertainment to bring the 12-part children’s fantasy series Avalon: Web of Magic to the big screen. Written by Rachel Roberts, Avalon: Web of Magic follows three female mages (Emily, Adriane, and Kara) on a journey to find the source of all magic known as “Avalon”.
Along the way they do battle with the Dark Sorceress and the Spider Witch who hope to find Avalon and harness its magic for their own nefarious purposes. The “Web of Magic” referenced in the title is the series of portals that connect all the worlds together. The books, which have also been published under the title Avalon: Quest for Magic, have sold over 2 million copies worldwide and the series has spawned graphic novels and spin-off trilogies.
Robert Mandell has signed on to write the screenplay; the Avalon series is loosely based off of his 1995 animated children’s series Princess Gwenevere and The Jewel Riders and he himself has been involved with the Avalon books since their inception. He’s also responsible for the CBS cartoon Ace Ventura: The Animated Series so take that for what you will.
Given the fact that the Avalon mythology is so dense, I highly doubt that Avalon: Web of Magic will be just one movie; it’s all but guaranteed that Minds Eye and their partners are hoping to turn this into a franchise. But I hope that they keep in mind that the first movie will actually have to be good and popular before that happens; this could easily turn into a Vampire’s Assistant situation where it tanks at the box office and the one movie produced feels more like an installment than something self-contained.
Have you read the Avalon: Web of Magic series? Do you think it’ll translate well to the big screen without needing at least 20 movies?