Nickelodeon Is Doing A Paddington Series With Ben Whishaw And Our Hearts Can't Wait

Nickelodeon will bring the wonder that is Paddington Bear along for an all-new series built for pre-schoolers (and the rest of us big kids, too, of course).

The network announced on Thursday it had reached a deal with producer David Heyman (the film versions of Paddington as well as Harry Potter) to develop a Paddington series that will feature a younger version of our plush pal in 3D animation and be geared towards the littlest little ones. Every episode of the forthcoming series will be book-ended by Paddington writing letters to his Aunt Aunt Lucy from Windsor Gardens, detailing his daily adventures and all of the wondrous things he learns about the world.

If that's not exciting enough, actor Ben Whishaw will also reprise his role as the voice of the cuddly character, after starring as the character in the celebrated live-action animation film series. Meanwhile, Adam Shaw will direct the series, and Nick has released an initial image of the adorable character art to showcase what the littler version of Paddington will look like in the show.

In a statement, Heyman said, "It is a joy to bring this uniquely life-enhancing bear to a whole new audience of younger children. We are thrilled that the inimitably brilliant Ben Whishaw will continue to voice Paddington. And we are excited to be collaborating with the vibrant and dynamic animation team at Blue Zoo, working from scripts by the wonderfully talented screenwriting team Foster and Lamont. With producers Karen Davidsen and Simon Quinn, we're all set for a glorious new chapter for Paddington."

Paddington is based upon the popular book character from Michael Bond and has previously been adapted for the small screen before several times. Bond himself scripted and produced a British stop-motion animation series that debuted in 1975, and Hanna-Barbera followed that up with the animatedPaddington Bear series in 1989. The short-lived The Adventures of Paddington Beardebuted in 1997.

Nickelodeon's Paddington will debut on the network sometime in 2020.

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