Posted in: Netflix, Preview, streaming, TV | Tagged: Jeff Kline, magic, Magic: The Gathering, netflix

Magic: The Gathering: Jeff Kline Replaces Russo Bros on Netflix Series

Published Fri, 20 Aug 2021 13:23:11 -0500

Netflix, Hasbro, and Entertainment One's upcoming CG-animated series adaptation of Magic: The Gathering is seeing a major change in creative leadership, with Joe Russo and Anthony Russo amicably departing the project over creative differences regarding how to best adapt the game to series. Executive producer Jeff Kline (Transformers: Prime) will oversee a new creative team to develop an all-new storyline as well as expand on the stories of the Planeswalkers (Magic's magic-wielding faces and heels). Co-executive producer and story editor Steve Melching (Star Wars: The Clone Wars), supervising director Audu Paden, art director Izzy Medrano and writers Nicole Dubuc, Russell Sommer & Dan Frey, and Taneka Stotts currently make up the team. Snowball Studios will be taking over animation from the originally-announced Bardel Studio.

"I'm grateful to the Russos for bringing me into the world of Magic: The Gathering – specifically, over dinner at one of their go-to Cleveland restaurants," Kline said. "Magic is one of those rare intellectual properties with such a wellspring of mythology that "picking and choosing" is half the battle. Every single person working on the series understands how beloved this universe is – and feels both the exhilaration and tremendous pressure that comes with translating Magic across mediums." Wizards of the Coast, eOne, and Netflix said in a joint statement, "While the Russo Brothers are no longer part of the animated series, their passion for the game combined with their early creative perspective and input helped us to shape the project to a place where we believe fans of the game and those new to the 'Gathering Universe' will enjoy the series and discover what millions of fans around the globe have known for the past 25 years."

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