Popeye, one of a handful of characters who have been extremely popular in the last century, has never managed to receive his much-deserved renaissance on the big screen. The iconic sailor with his unique pose, his big cigar, and his penchant for punching hard after gulping up a can of spinach has been part of the cultural zeitgeist for quite a bit of time, and all of us have seen him on our television screens in one form or another whilst growing up. So are we about to get a Live-Action Popeye Movie?
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Created by Elzie Crisler Segar, Popeye was first introduced to the world on January 17, 1929, in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre. A slew of animations soon followed, but the first stab at a live-action Popeye feature came about in 1980 when acclaimed director Robert Altman and three studios (Disney, Paramount, and King Pictures) joined together to bring the property to the big screen.
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The timing was perfect as new Popeye animations and reruns of the classic series from the 60s had been quite popular during that time. Robin Williams, who was at the top of his career, was signed on to play Popeye the Sailor Man while Shelley Duvall stepped in as his love interest Olive Oyl. In addition, veteran actor Paul L. Smith came on as the iconic villain Bluto. This Popeye feature was a musical comedy and followed Popeye's adventures as he arrives in the town of Sweethaven and attempts to win the heart of Olive while thwarting Bluto’s numerous attempts to take him down.
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Made on a budget of 20 million, Popeye was a commercial success, but the studios behind it were less than impressed, hoping that the film had made more considering its popular source material. Critics absolutely lambasted the film, but over the course of the last four decades, several notable directors have cited the film as an inspiration. With studios disappointed in the film, there was no chance of a sequel, and the property was once again relegated to the animation medium.
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However, unknown to most, Popeye’s live-action history was about to get a whole lot complicated. In the US, copyrighted properties entered the public domain exactly 95 years after their origin, and beginning in 2025, Popeye began to enter the public domain. This meant anyone could now make a Popeye film. Predictably, a slew of independently produced horror films based on the character quickly followed. From ‘Popeye The Slayer Man’ to ‘Shiver Me Timbers’, each of these films imagines Popeye as a slasher villain who descends upon an unsuspecting gang of civilians, causing murder and mayhem in the process. Even though the public domain has its own benefits in specific circumstances, it is clear these films are not in line with the spirit of the character.
Live-Action Popeye Movie?
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With wealthy individuals fulfilling their wildest fantasies by creating violent R-rated adventures of public domain characters, including both Popeye and Winnie the Pooh, what needs to happen is a serious entity coming forward to do justice to the character it so richly deserves. Steven Spielberg was able to flawlessly do so with another legacy character, Tintin in 2011, and there’s no reason why this exact strategy cannot be replicated with Popeye as well.
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This is exactly what was about to happen in 2010 when Sony Pictures began development on a Popeye animated feature, tapping auteur director Genndy Tartakovsky to direct. A release date of 2014 was quickly set, and a couple of writers were onboarded to get the project started. As test footage and storyboards began to be leaked, word quickly got around that the project was not moving as fast as it should have been. Tartakovsky would then come forward in 2015 to state he was no longer working on the project. Sony, on the other hand, tried to keep the project alive with a new creative team but never got anywhere. Tartakovsky and the Popeye franchise owners, King Feature, then decided to make their own film as well, but it too couldn't get off the ground.
Live-Action Popeye Movie?
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King Features knew the character’s cinematic potential and never really gave up on the character, even though a multitude of previous attempts had failed. In 2024, they announced, along with Chernin Entertainment, that a new Popeye film was in development with acclaimed screenwriter Michael Caleo (“Sexy Beast,” “The Family,” “The Sopranos”) on script duty. What is truly thrilling is that this is a live-action project, marking the first live-action Popeye film since the one featuring Robin Williams in 1980. No further details regarding the project have come out since then, and if history is to be believed, this iteration might not be looking too good as well.
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So, will we ever get a new live-action Popeye film? The only hope in this regard is the latest live-action iteration in development by Kings Features and Chernin Entertainment. Since the character is now in the public domain, technically, anyone can make a film faithful to the character. The fact that this hasn't happened yet is because the concerned parties do not believe that a Popeye movie will lead to significant box office revenue, and there might be licensing and merchandising issues as well.
Live-Action Popeye Movie?
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Despite such a complicated onscreen history, it makes no sense why Popeye has been extremely hard to adapt. In an era where seemingly unfilmable properties such as Dune and Watchmen have several features, why can't the people in charge get their act together and make a proper Popeye film? While creative differences exist on every project, what really matters is the prospect of a project making back its budget and turning a profit. If the last decade is to be observed, risky prospects in film have often failed to pan out, leading to tens of millions in losses. In an increasingly shrinking theatrical landscape, no one is willing to take such risks, and it seems increasingly likely that a proper Popeye film will remain a pipedream for now.
