Roku Drops the Trailer for the First ‘Spiderwick Chronicles’ Adaptation in 16 Years

For the first time in 16 years, Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black‘s imaginative children’s book series, The Spiderwick Chronicles, is getting another adaptation.

The five-book series is reminiscent of other major children’s fantasy/adventure series, such as Harry Potter, Narnia, and Percy Jackson and the Olympians. It follows the Grace children, Jared, Simon, and Mallory, who move to their great-grandfather’s old Spiderwick Estate with their single mother, Helen. The family quickly begins to notice odd occurrences around the house, leading the kids to discover an entire world of sprites, ogres, and goblins outside their home. While the discovery of an enchanted world exposes the children to many wonders, it also exposes them to numerous dangers they may not be prepared for.

Fans of the book likely hoped it would get the same treatment as Harry Potter or Narnia, with a full film dedicated to adapting each book. However, the sole Spiderwick Chronicles film adaptation released in 2008 condensed the entire series into one movie, thus leaving out large portions of several books and instigating a lot of changes. While it was still a well-made movie, some might have hoped for more Spiderwick Chronicles content.

Finally, a Disney+ TV series adaptation of the books was greenlit, but things hit a snag when Disney opted not to pick up the completed series due to cost-cutting efforts. Fortunately, Roku stepped in to save the show and is now gearing up for its release.

Roku releases the first fantastical trailer for The Spiderwick Chronicles

Roku dropped the first teaser trailer for The Spiderwick Chronicles on February 21. Meanwhile, it has set the show’s release date to April 19, 2024.

The trailer sees the three Grace children moving into the Spiderwick estate. However, they’re soon startled to discover magic is in the air as they catch fairies in glass jars and talk to an ogre disguised as a human. When the ogre unveils his plans to rid the world of humans by consuming them all, the children find themselves racing against the clock to find the invisible realm and a way to save the world.

In the trailer, we can glimpse the influence of the books in Mulgarath’s (Christian Slater) plot for world domination and in the featuring of fairies and the looking stone. Several differences can be spotted, too, especially in Mulgarath’s immediate presence, as he was a shadowy villain for the first few books, and with the aging up of the Grace siblings.

Perhaps the most exciting part of the trailer is watching Slater depict the vicious shape-shifting ogre Mulgarath. Slater is arguably best known for playing the sociopath J.D. Dean in Heathers, so it’s not surprising he perfectly captures the menacing and sinister nature of Mulgarath. Starring opposite Slater are Lyon Daniels, Noah Cottrell, and Mychala Faith Lee as the three Grace siblings, Jared, Simon, and Mallory, respectively. Meanwhile, Parenthood star Joy Bryant has signed on to portray Helen, the Grace matriarch. Shazam! star Jack Dylan Grazer will provide the voice of Thimbletack, the brownie/boggart who becomes a loyal friend to the Grace children. Rounding out the cast are Momona Tamada as Emiko and Alyvia Alyn Lind as Calliope.

The official synopsis for The Spiderwick Chronicles reads:

Helen and her children, 15-year-old fraternal twins Jared and Simon and their sister Mallory move to their ancestral home, Spiderwick. Jared discovers a boggart and realizes that magical creatures are real! The only one to believe him is his great-aunt Lucinda who implores Jared to find the pages of her father’s field guide to magical creatures and protect them from the murderous Ogre, Mulgarath.

The first season will consist of eight episodes, and it has not yet been confirmed if it will be a limited or a multi-season series. Hence, it’s unclear whether the first season will adapt all the books or only some. Even if it does adapt all five books, it will have more runtime and space than the original movie, raising hope for a more faithful and thorough adaptation.

(featured image: Roku)