On January 7, 2013, Jeff Robinov (then head of the studio's motion picture division) founded a screenplay development department, nicknamed a "think tank" for developing theatrical animated films, known as
Warner Animation Group. The group includes
John Requa,
Glenn Ficarra,
Nicholas Stoller,
Jared Stern,
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. and
The Lego Ninjago Movie (both 2017), and a sequel,
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (2019). While
The Lego Batman Movie proved to be successful at the box office,
The Lego Ninjago Movie and
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part were both unable to recoup its budget, with
Ninjago being the first film from Warner Animation Group to be a box-office flop. WAG's second film,
Storks, was released September 23, 2016. It received mixed reviews from critics. On December 14, 2017,
Warner Bros. announced
Allison Abbate had been named Executive Vice President, and Chris Leahy has been named Senior Vice President. '' in 2026
Smallfoot, released September 28, 2018, received mostly positive reviews from critics and became a box office success. In October 2019,
Locksmith Animation formed a multi-year production deal with Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Animation Group, which will distribute Locksmith's films. An animated reboot of the
Scooby-Doo film series titled
Scoob! was initially set for a theatrical release on May 15, 2020, but then it was delayed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. On April 21, 2020, it was announced that it would instead go to
video on demand in response to the pandemic. It received mixed reviews from critics. A live-action/animated film based on
Tom & Jerry was released internationally on February 11, 2021, and in the United States on February 26, simultaneously in theaters and on
HBO Max. The film also marked the debut of the company's new logo, made to match the November 2019 refresh of the Warner Bros. shield that itself debuted a month prior in
Locked Down. It received generally negative reviews from critics, and is the first film from the company to have met so.
Space Jam: A New Legacy, starring
LeBron James, was released on July 16, 2021, and was the first film from Warner Animation Group to incorporate traditional animation. It also received negative reviews from critics, due to its extensive
product placement of
WarnerMedia's
intellectual properties. An animated film based on the
Legion of Super-Pets titled
DC League of Super-Pets was released on July 29, 2022. It received generally positive reviews from critics. A Christmas-themed spin-off prequel titled
Scoob! Holiday Haunt, taking place in the gang's youth, with the actors who portrayed their younger selves reprising, was set for release in 2022 on
HBO Max, but was cancelled following the merger of
WarnerMedia and
Discovery, Inc. to form
Warner Bros. Discovery in April 2022 by CEO
David Zaslav on August 2, 2022, citing cost-cutting measures and a refocus on theatrical films rather than creating projects for streaming. Later that month, it was reported that the film would still be finished, even though Warner Bros. Discovery had no present plans to release it. Although the film was
used as a tax write-off, the film was finally finished on November 4 that year. Following the merger, it was announced in August that Allison Abbate would be leaving the studio. On February 9, 2023, it was reported that former
DreamWorks Animation chief creative officer
Bill Damaschke was in talks to lead the studio. On May 5, 2023, it was confirmed in a Warner Bros. Discovery earnings call by Zaslav that Damaschke had been hired, and was hard at work with Warner Bros. Pictures Group co-CEOs
Michael De Luca and
Pamela Abdy on developing a new slate of films. On June 9, 2023, Damaschke announced the rebranding of the division into
Warner Bros. Pictures Animation and stated that they planned to follow the creative lead of Abdy and De Luca.
Upcoming releases In August 2018, the studio began development on a live-action/animated hybrid film based on
Looney Tunes and
Merrie Melodies character
Wile E. Coyote, titled
Coyote vs. Acme. The project was directed by
Dave Green from a script by
Samy Burch, with
Chris DeFaria and
James Gunn acting as producers. Initially, the film was scheduled for July 21, 2023, a date it would later lose to
Greta Gerwig's
Barbie. In November 2023, parent company
Warner Bros. Discovery announced that the project would be shelved despite its completion, opting to take a
tax write-off instead. Following industry-wide backlash, Green and his collaborators were allowed to shop the film to potential distributors. In March 2025,
Ketchup Entertainment acquired worldwide rights to the film, with a 2026 release window; later scheduling the project for release on August 28, 2026. In January 2018, the studio began a strategic partnership with
Dr. Seuss Enterprises to produce musical films based on Seuss' work. The first film under this collaboration is an
adaptation of
The Cat in the Hat, written and directed by
Alessandro Carloni and
Erica Rivinoja and starring
Bill Hader as the titular character. It is scheduled to release on November 6, 2026. A
spin-off based on the characters Thing One and Thing Two is also in development. In June 2023, following the studio's rebranding to WBPA, a first-look deal with independent British studio
Locksmith Animation was announced. The first film under this partnership is a musical-comedy titled
Bad Fairies, directed by Megan Nicole Dong from a script by
Deborah Frances-White. The film is scheduled to release on May 21, 2027. A Christmas film titled
Margie Claus is scheduled to be released on November 5, 2027, with
Melissa McCarthy to star and produce (under her
On the Day Productions company) alongside
Ben Falcone and Pilar Flynn. Falcone also co-wrote the script with Damon Jones. The project was previously set up as a live-action feature at
New Line Cinema. An adaptation of ''
Oh, the Places You'll Go!'' is set to be the second film of WBPA's partnership with Dr. Seuss Enterprises. The film is scheduled for a March 17, 2028 release, with
Jon M. Chu and
Jill Culton directing from a screenplay by Rob Lieber.
J.J. Abrams (through his company
Bad Robot Productions) and Gregg Taylor will produce. In collaboration with sister company
DC Studios and puppet animation studio Swaybox, WBPA is developing
Dynamic Duo, directed by Arthur Mintz and written by Matthew Aldrich. An origin story for the characters
Dick Grayson (
Nightwing) and
Jason Todd (
Red Hood), the film is "a mix of animation, puppetry and CG". The project has been scheduled to open on June 30, 2028. A feature based on
Hello Kitty is scheduled to be released on July 21, 2028 in collaboration with sister company
New Line Cinema,
Sanrio and
FlynnPictureCo. A feature adaptation of
Marissa Meyer's fantasy book series
The Lunar Chronicles was announced as the second film in development under the Locksmith Animation deal.
Meet the Flintstones, an origin story for the Hanna-Barbera characters, was announced to be in development along with the studio's rebranding to WBPA. It is being directed by Todd Wilderman and Hamish Grieve from a screenplay by
Aaron Horvath and
Michael Jelenic, directors of
Illumination's
The Super Mario Bros. Movie. A photorealistic animated feature film adaptation of the
Animal Planet series
Meerkat Manor was announced to be in development in April 2024, with
Seth Green and Tracy Falco set to produce the film, and series creator Caroline Hawkins and Clare Birks from
Oxford Scientific Films to serve as executive producers. A "super-secret project" based on
Looney Tunes is in development. Todd Wilderman and Hamish Grieve are attached to direct. A feature adaptation of
Emily the Strange is in development with
Pamela Ribon set to write the screenplay.
Bad Robot will co-produce the film, with
Rob Reger, the character's creator, serving as executive producer alongside Trevor Duke-Moretz. A new feature based on
Tom and Jerry is in the works, with
Rashida Jones,
Will McCormack and
Michael Govier penning the script. In January 2026, it was announced that
Jorge R. Gutíérrez would direct an animated film based on
Looney Tunes and
Merrie Melodies character
Speedy Gonzales. In April 2026, a feature adaptation of Zac Gorman's book series
Thisby Thestoop was announced to be in development at the studio. Steve Desmond and Michael Sherman are attached to write a screenplay based on the series' first book,
Thisby Thestoop and the Black Mountain. ==Process==