Disney+ shelves ‘Power Rangers’ series before production after plans for high budget reboot stall

Disney+ has decided against moving forward with its planned live action Power Rangers series, ending development of the project before it reached production. The decision marks another setback for Hasbro's efforts to establish a new live action version of the long running franchise.

According to Deadline, Disney+ has passed on the series, which had been in development for about a year and a half. The project was being developed with sibling studio 20th Television and was written and executive produced by Jonathan E Steinberg and Dan Shotz, the showrunners and executive producers behind Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

The series will not proceed beyond the development stage. Sources cited by Deadline said the decision was driven primarily by business considerations, particularly the potential cost involved in producing a high end live action superhero series.

A significant factor was reportedly the ownership of the Power Rangers intellectual property. Hasbro owns the brand, meaning Disney and its studio would have been investing heavily in a major production without owning the underlying franchise. The economics of that arrangement were understood to be less attractive at the scale envisioned for the proposed series.

The decision comes after several attempts to develop a new live action Power Rangers project. Hasbro has been seeking a fresh television adaptation of the franchise, with Netflix previously exploring its own version several years ago.

The Disney+ project represented an especially notable creative pairing because of Steinberg and Shotz's involvement. The duo are closely associated with Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Disney's adaptation of Rick Riordan's fantasy novels. They are currently working on the third season of that series, which is produced by 20th Television for Disney+ and is scheduled to premiere on November 20.

The cancellation also highlights the financial calculations involved when streaming platforms develop expensive projects based on intellectual property owned by another company. While Power Rangers has an established global audience and decades of history, a large scale live action production would require considerable spending on costumes, action sequences, visual effects, sets and other elements associated with the franchise.

Disney+ has increasingly explored properties outside the traditional Disney corporate catalogue in recent months. The streamer has made development deals involving projects based on outside intellectual property, including proposed series connected to Ella Enchanted and Casper. The Power Rangers decision therefore does not signal a complete retreat from outside franchises, but demonstrates that individual projects still face scrutiny over their financial prospects.

The franchise itself has an unusually long television history. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers debuted in 1993 and introduced American audiences to a superhero team format built partly from footage and concepts originating in the Japanese Super Sentai franchise. The brand subsequently expanded through numerous television seasons, films, toys, video games and other merchandise.

For fans expecting Disney+ to deliver a fresh live action interpretation, the latest development means that version of the Rangers will remain unrealised. There is also no indication in the report that the property itself has been abandoned by Hasbro. Instead, the Disney+ project has simply reached its end during development.

With Disney+ choosing not to proceed, Hasbro will now have to consider another route for the next major live action Power Rangers adaptation.