The damsel in distress is one of the most timeworn story structures that have ever been used in storytelling. As time has gone on and storytelling has moved forward, the damsel has often become a heroine in her own right. One such story that brought this sort of plot to the table is Robert Munsch's children's book The Paper Bag Princess, a story that was first published back in 1980 and that is now going to be adapted over at Universal with the help of producers Margot Robbie and Elizabeth Banks.
Focusing on one Princess Elizabeth, The Paper Bag Princess shows what happens when our lead loses her royal wardrobe at the hands of a fire-breathing dragon. With her wedding to Prince Ronald set to happen the next day, Elizabeth travels across the land to pursue the dragon, who just so happens to be terrorized by her prince at that same time. Having only a paper bag as her current clothing option, Princess Elizabeth is about to learn some important lessons about beauty, as well as self-respect.
It's the type of story that fits perfectly with Elizabeth Banks' recent output, as her focus on female-oriented franchises has not only included her work with the Pitch Perfect series, but can also be seen in her involvement with the new Charlie's Angels reboot. In fact, it's such a good fit that Banks could sign on to The Paper Bag Princess as its director, per Variety, and fellow producer Margot Robbie is in the running for a role in the film's cast. Katie Silberman has also already signed on to write the project. So far the film hasn't hired anyone to play Prince Ronald, who--spoiler alert!--eventually turns out to be more of a jerk than anyone at first noticed by the end of the story.
With Elizabeth Banks working on Charlie's Angels for a 2019 release date, and Margot Robbie heavily involved as the DC Cinematic Universe's Harley Quinn, there's a chance that one or both of their schedules might not match up to whatever hypothetical launch date this project carries. But if they're able to fully commit to Robert Munsch's classic kids book, we could be in for something special.
The project is clearly still in the early stages of coming together, but we'll let you know if The Paper Bag Princess lands a production start or release date soon. In the meantime you can catch Elizabeth Banks in Pitch Perfect 3 on December 22nd, with I, Tonya bringing Margot Robbie back to the forefront on December 8th. However, if you're looking to spot some fun at the movies a lot sooner, take a look at our 2017 release schedule to check out all the options coming up!
