News broke on Friday that another global brand is coming to Hollywood. Hello Kitty, the iconic Japanese cat-looking cartoon that has been a popular character for the past 40 years will receive its own feature movie. The film is set to arrive sometime in 2019. Hello Kitty is a gijinka, a.k.a. a personification of a cat. The official character was born on 1 November in London and received the name Kitty White. She is portrayed as a kind-hearted girl, very close to her twin sister Mimmy.
The iconic brand launched in 1974 and became a popular member of Japanese culture.
It was originally marketed for young girls, but over the years teenagers and even grown-ups have been added to the targeted group. It's most commonly known as a fashion brand appearing on stuffed animals, clothes, accessories, school supplies and stationery. Hello Kitty has also spread to electronic appliances, jewellery, credit cards and even airplanes.
Hello Kitty has also transitioned into the media over the years. Over 15 video games have been created since 1992 for platforms including PC, Game Boy, PlayStation, Nintendo, Xbox and mobile. it has also appeared in a number of TV shows (1987, 1993, 1999, 2005 and 2006) including Hello Kitty's Paradise an animated series which ran for twelve seasons between 1999 and 2011.
More recently the company behind Hello Kitty created their own studio in the United States called Sanrio Media & Pictures Entertainment and started selling the characters from the cat universe. As of 3 July 2015 it has also been confirmed that the brand will receive its own feature film sometime in 2019.
Although it seems a bit farfetched that a brand would be made into a Hollywood movie, The LEGO Movie seems to have paved the road for companies looking for a big time appearance.
The film about the plastic construction bricks was a somewhat unexpected success, it managed to gross for $468 million worldwide over performing its $100 million budget. The movie also received excellent criticism, scoring 7.8 on IMDB and 96% on Rotten Tomatoes.
