Recording of Netflix series Matilda, also a creation of Roald Dahl
Netflix has bought the rights to the stories of writer Roald Dahl. The British author, who died in 1990, became known worldwide for his imaginative children’s books such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Big Friendly Giant.
The streaming service often collaborates with well-known directors or celebrities, such as the Obamas, to develop new productions, but a corporate takeover like this is rare. It involves the entire Roald Dahl Story Company, the company that owns the rights to all of Dahl’s stories and characters. The acquisition amount has not been disclosed.
Netflix is currently working on a series based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and to a musical by Matilda. Three years ago, the streaming service already bought the rights to make 16 stories by Dahl, for an amount reportedly between 500 million and a billion dollars.
A film of Matilda was also made earlier, this is the trailer:
The purchase comes at a time when Netflix has become increasingly competitive. At the moment, the company is still the most popular streaming service with 209 million paying subscribers, but services such as Amazon Prime and Disney+ are growing faster and want to boast large productions in the coming years.
Dahl’s children’s books have sold more than 300 million copies and have been published in more than 60 languages. In addition to films and series, Netflix also has plans for games and theater plays based on Dahl’s characters.
