The creator of Toontown, author Gary K. Wolf, has successfully reclaimed the rights to Jessica Rabbit and the Roger Rabbit characters from Disney. This major rights reversion now allows Wolf to move forward with new projects outside Disney’s control. The project “furthest along” in development is a live-action Jessica Rabbit movie. This new cinematic chapter aims to expand the character’s legacy dramatically.
The “XERIOUS” Origin Story
Wolf plans to base the new film on his 2022 novel, Jessica Rabbit: XERIOUS Business. This story provides a completely new origin for the character. The plot reveals Jessica started as a plain, ordinary human named Jessica Krupnick who simply craved adventure. She lived a humble life and felt unfulfilled, a striking contrast to the star persona fans know. This human origin is the key to the live-action format, as the film will focus on the actress playing Krupnick. Her full transformation into the glamorous, resourceful cartoon spy happens after she joins the super-secret XERIOUS Organization.
Character Transformation and Genre
Jessica Krupnick found her calling after answering a mysterious want ad. She joined the XERIOUS Organization, a super-secret agency pursuing global criminal masterminds. She learned how to fight, shoot, and present herself as a glamorous, resourceful spy. The film will adopt a modern, spy-thriller genre, tracking her human transformation. This moves away from the 1940s noir setting and shows Jessica as an intelligent agent, making her much more than a sultry songbird.
Creative Control and Disney’s Hesitation
Wolf regained full creative control over his characters through the 35-Year Copyright Reversion Clause. He confirmed the process with Disney was civil, allowing him to pursue this new vision. This creative freedom is key. Director Robert Zemeckis previously claimed that the “current Disney” would never pursue a sequel featuring Jessica Rabbit’s iconic design. Wolf’s regained rights remove that creative roadblock.
Wolf set an extremely high bar for the new production. He promised fans that the new film must “at least match the quality of the original [1988] movie” in production value and script content. Despite now holding the reins, Wolf remains open to working with Disney on a partnership basis. He hopes to involve surviving creative alumni from the original team in this new cinematic revival.
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