The Power Rangers have come home.
Haim Saban's newly formed Saban Brands company has re-acquired from Disney the rights to the "Power Rangers" franchise that built Saban's fortune in the mid-1990s. Saban has cut a deal with Nickelodeon for 20 new "Power Rangers" episodes, while the library of some 700 older segs will begin airing on cabler Nicktoons later this year.
Saban Brands prexy Elie Dekel said Haim Saban approached Disney about retrieving the Power Rangers franchise more than six months ago because he was convinced it had potential for a strong revival. Disney has maintained some "Power Rangers" merchandise licensing and has had episodes of the show airing in foreign markets. But the property clearly hasn't been a priority for the Mouse.
Dekel sees great promise in introducing the Power Rangers -- revolving around a group of ordinary youths who can "morph" into superheroes -- to a new generation of kids through the TV series, live touring events and feature films, among other efforts.
"Haim has always felt that the brand could truly be evergreen, and while Disney continued to produce the series and support consumer products part of the business, we still see tremendous untapped potential," Dekel said.
http://www.variety.c...egoryid=14&cs=1
Sat May 15, 2010 5:37 pm