If anything is in right now at Disney, it’s reimaginings and villains. The most obvious examples are the hit ABC series ‘Once Upon A Time’ and the upcoming Angelina Jolie film ‘Maleficent’, but now the House of Mouse has announced a new project that combines the two trends together into one all-new live action Disney Channel original movie featuring the children of some of Disney’s most notorious villains.

According to a recent press release, Kenny Ortega of the ‘High School Musical’ films will direct ‘Descendants’, a fairytale take on the age-old nature versus nurture argument that involves the kids of classic villains Cruella De Vil, Maleficent, the Evil Queen, and Jafar as they wonder if they should follow in the evil footsteps of their parents or forge their own path of good. Here’s the description of the story written by ‘Runaway Bride’ team Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott:

In a present day idyllic kingdom, the benevolent teenaged son of the King and Queen (Beast and Belle from Disney’s iconic ‘Beauty and the Beast’) is poised to take the throne. His first proclamation: offer a chance at redemption to the trouble-making offspring of Cruella De Vil, Maleficent, the Evil Queen and Jafar who have been imprisoned on a forbidden island with all the other villains, sidekicks, evil step-mothers and step-sisters.  These villainous descendants (Carlos, Mal, Evvie, and Jay, respectively) are allowed into the kingdom to attend prep school alongside the offspring of iconic Disney heroes including Fairy Godmother, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel and Mulan.  However, the evil teens face a dilemma.  Should they follow in their nefarious parents’ footsteps and help all the villains regain power or embrace their innate goodness and save the kingdom?

As a huge Disney fan, I am all about this film’s concept. It’s like ‘Kingdom Hearts’ meets Brian K. Vaughn’s ‘The Runaways’ or ‘Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow’ set in a high school. And while some people look at DCOMs as second rate films, they’ve churned out some pretty fun films like ‘Brink’, ‘Johnny Tsunami’, and ‘High School Musical’ (Yeah, I said it!), so it’s very possible that this one could be a winner too.

Currently, casting for ‘Descendants’ is underway and it’s scheduled for a Spring 2015 release, so we have a ton of time to speculate and let our imaginations run wild. For instance, what other Disney offspring do you hope to pop up in the film? Or better yet, what other villains would you want to cameo? (I’m wishing for Gaston and Hades.) Do you have any ideas for who could play the characters already announced? And how do you think their villainous parents will feel about their kids being exposed to the forces of good? Let’s hear all your thoughts and theories in the comment section!

Source: /Film