StudioCanal is doubling down on its book-to-screen strategy.

The production company has formed a new joint-venture called “On Screen” with French publishing giant Hachette Livre. (The Bolloré Group has a stake in both entities’ owners, CANAL+ and Louis Hachette Group.)

Under this new venture, StudioCanal will develop screen adaptations drawing from Hachette Livre’s massive catalogue of more than 100,000 books. Serving as its “preferred studio partner,” StudioCanal will lead the way on creative packaging, financing, production and international distribution.

Hachette is the biggest publisher in France and ranks in the top three in other territories like the US, the UK and Spain. It publishes 15,000 new titles per year across more than 200 imprints. It notched sales of US$3.6 billion (EUR€3.1 billion) last year. Hachette has rights to the iconic French comic book series Asterix (pictured) and the works of Enid Blyton (excluding the Noddy series), and it’s home to multiple divisions and children’s imprints like Little, Brown Books For Young Readers; Orion Children’s Books; and Orchard Books.

“Book adaptations consistently outperform on screen, both commercially and critically,” a release noted. “Today, they represent around 40% of the top 100 global box office while accounting for less than 10% of total film production, and underpin many of the most successful scripted series globally.” [Kidscreen could not independently verify the statistic.] “Much of this potential remains untapped, with publishers still playing a limited role in the long-term value created by these adaptations.”

While the release didn’t mention any specific titles being lined up, it’s hard to miss that StudioCanal sees more potential in this space thanks to the continued success of kids book adaptations—a key example being StudioCanal’s own Paddington franchise, which has a new live-action sequel as well as other content in the works. 

The new joint-venture builds on momentum from two years ago, when the company set up a label called StudioCanal Stories to ramp up literary adaptations. That launch coincided with the announcement of a CG-animated Miffy revival (78 x seven minutes) that recently debuted on Sky Kids.  The studio has also been quietly working on other kidlit-inspired movies, such as a Mr. Men Little Miss feature and the long-gestating Pippi Longstocking film. Also in 2024, StudioCanal entered into a partnership with Hachette-owned Editions Albert René to work on a sixth installment in the Asterix live-action film franchise.