Netflix Has The Biggest Robin Williams Fantasy Adventure
Before it became a successful franchise featuring performers like Dwayne Johnson and Karen Gillan, Jumanji first stomped into theaters in 1995 during one of the heydays of Robin Williams’ career. It was a terrific time to be a fan of the Mork & Mindy star as these were also the years of titles like Ferngully, Aladdin, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Birdcage, Jack, Flubber, Good Will Hunting, Patch Adams, and What Dreams May Come. Now, Netflix subscribers can see where the stampede began – whether it be for the first time or the 100th – as Jumanji is streaming on the platform.
Directed by Joe Johnston, who was also the eye behind Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, and Captain America: The First Avenger (just to name a few), the fantasy film pulled its story from Chris Van Allsburg’s children’s picture book of the same name.
With a stacked cast that not only featured Robin Williams in a leading role but also saw Bebe Neuwirth, Bonnie Hunt, Jonathan Hyde, and David Alan Grier as well as then-newcomers Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce.
In Jumanji, we meet siblings Peter (Bradley Pierce) and Judy Shepherd (Kirsten Dunst) who have just moved into a mansion with their aunt following the tragic death of their parents the winter before. In the attic, Peter and Judy stumble upon a game called Jumanji which – upon playing – they inadvertently free a trapped man named Alan Parrish (Robin Williams).
Alan tells them that if they win the game, he’ll be permanently freed but there are plenty of raucous animals and people hoping to keep Alan trapped in the game.
Along with a great time to be a Robin Williams fan, the mid-90s were also a jumping-off point for Kirsten Dunst’s career with Jumanji following her success in 1994’s Interview with the Vampire and Little Women and coming just before her major takeoff in titles including Anastasia, Wag the Dog, Drop Dead Gorgeous, and The Virgin Suicides.
With a stacked cast of long-time favorites and up-and-coming talent, Sony’s fantasy feature stampeded the box office, raking in $262.8 million against its $65 million budget, making it the tenth highest-grossing film of the year.
Running with the popularity of the first film, UPN Kids quickly snatched up the rights to the story and charged forward with an animated series that would run for three seasons from 1996 – 1999. While Robin Williams, Kirsten Dunst, and the other cast members didn’t reprise their voice roles for the animated project, big names in the world of voice-overs including William Fagerbakke (SpongeBob SquarePants), Debi Derryberry (Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius) and Ashley Johnson (Growing Pains, The Last of Us) would step in for the roles.
The Jumanji Spin-Off
Then, in 2005, The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau took his own chance on Chris Van Allsburg’s IP, hoping that the author’s book Zathura would make the perfect follow-up to Jumanji. Based in the same universe, and considered to be a spin-off of the original film, the title didn’t bring Robin Williams’ character or any of the others in to bridge the gap, essentially breaking even at the box office.
Regardless, the film, Zathura: A Space Adventure earned positive feedback from critics and boasted its own impressive call sheet that included Dax Shepard, Kristen Stewart, Tim Robbins, Josh Hutcherson, and Jonah Bobo.
Finally, in 2017, Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard, Bad Teacher) breathed fresh life into the franchise and reinvigorated it for a new generation. Sadly, Robin Williams passed away three years prior which was undoubtedly one of many reasons that Kasdan decided to trudge ahead with an all-new cast of characters.
The New Jumanji Franchise
These days, Jumanji is synonymous with Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Nick Jonas, Alex Wolff, Awkwafina, Danny DeVito, and Danny Glover.
With Kasdan’s follow-up Jumanji franchise film coming out in 2019, many fans have been wondering if a fourth installment is on the way, which one of the film’s producers revealed would be the case with many of the new cast slated to return.
While Robin Williams’ life was cut too short, we’re lucky to have such a wide array of films and television shows that keep his memory alive. If you haven’t caught it yet, jump into the game and tune in for Jumanji now streaming on Netflix.
