“Hollywood's officially run out of ideas”: Viewers online react humorously as Sony and Mattel team up for a live-action ‘View Master’ film

Sony Pictures and Masters of the Universe producer company Escape Artists recently declared that a live-action movie is going to be developed on a popular Mattel Company toy, the View Master, which is a very well-known toy first introduced in 1939.

Oscar nominee Phil Johnston, who has a lot of previous experience working on Disney’s animated movies like Wreck-It Ralph, Zootopia, and Ralph Breaks the Internet, is going to be the scriptwriter, as per Deadline.

Fans online shared their views about Hollywood running out of ideas and having to resort to creating a cinematic universe based on a children’s toy, and one netizen spoke about this on X:

"Hollywood’s officially run out of ideas, they’re making a movie about the toy you used to click through vacation slides on. What’s next, a cinematic universe for Etch A Sketch?"

However, Phil Johnston said that the View Master had a lot of impact on him as a child since he was able to gain access to faraway worlds from the comfort of his room using the toy. He shared that he used to stare into the toy for hours on end and wants to create a movie with Matter, Sony, and Escape Artists, to bring that world back to the audience.

Todd Black from Escape Artists expressed his excitement about working on this project as well.

Here's how netizens reacted to news of Sony and Mattel’s new movie based on the View Master toy 

Fans did not seem to be pleased with this news as more reactions poured in. One fan took to their X platform and said, 

"That’s a wild throwback, childhood toys are officially getting cinematic universes now."

Another X user commented,

"Curious how to make a movie out of a viewer like this, loved these as a kid, but trying to figure out what could bring in people to watch a movie about a View Master."

Other netizens on X spoke about this and said,

"We already have ready player one bro This is literally a rip off of ready player one."

Another X user wrote about how other childhood toys might also end up having their own movies made someday and said,

"Does every childhood object have to turn into a movie? Next: ‘Slinky: The Untold Story"

Screenwriter of the View Master movie, Phil Johnston's take on the adaptation

Phil Johnston seemed to be optimistic regarding the movie and said that it was an honor for him to work on this project since it personally held a lot of meaning to him. As a kid, he used to stare into his View Master for hours on end and gain access to fantastical and magical worlds.

He said,

“View-Master was one of my favorite toys when I was a kid, because it gave me a chance to explore faraway worlds without ever leaving my room. I would escape into those slides for hours at a time, and no one would yell at me for staring. I want to bring the wonder I felt as a bowl-haired kid in the '80s to the big screen now, and working with Mattel, Sony, and Escape Artists is giving me the chance to do just that."
 

The producers of the movie are Todd Black, Steve Tisch, Jason Blumenthal, and Tony Shaw, from the house of Escape Artists, while from Mattel Corporation, Kevin McKeon and Arturo Thur de Koós are going to be overseeing the entire creative process.

Todd Black spoke about why the film is important to today’s audience and day and age. He said,

“View-Master has long been a window to the wonders of the world, sparking imagination in kids and adults alike. Teaming up with Robbie Brenner and Mattel Films gives us the chance to honor that legacy while creating an entirely new adventure for today’s audience. We can’t wait to bring this treasured toy’s sense of exploration to the big screen.”

Stay tuned for more updates.