Get your Red Ryder BB Gun ready because Fox has set A CHRISTMAS STORY as their next live musical event.
Set in the ’40s, the beloved holiday movie turned Broadway musical follows little Ralphie who dreams of seeing a Red Ryder BB gun under the trees on Christmas morning. The movie was based on the book In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash written by Jean Shepherd. Bob Clark directed the movie version from a screenplay he wrote with Shepherd and Leigh Brown. The movie was originally released in 1983 and has since become a cult classic as well as a staple on TBS during the holidays.
In 2012, it opened on Broadway with Benj Pasek and Justin Paul composing the score. The musical went on to receive three Tony Award nominations including Best Musical, Best Original Score, and Best Book of a Musical. Pasek and Paul are no strangers to the Hollywood scene. They penned the lyrics to La La Land‘s infectiously catchy Academy Award-winning song “City of Stars.”
The announcement of the live musical event comes after Fox’s super-successful Grease: Live. Marc Platt, who worked on Grease, is back to executive produce alongside Adam Siegel. Jonathan Tolins and Robert Cary co-executive producing and writing. Pasek and Paul will also compose several new songs for the live musical produced by Warner Horizon Unscripted Television.
Appropriately, the live musical will air in December and continues the live musical which we saw with The Wiz on NBC as well as The Sound of Music. NBC is also working on their own live musical event for a different holiday: Easter. The network recently announced that Jesus Christ Superstar will premiere during Easter 2018.
Dino-Ray Ramos | Staff Writer
