Sony Pictures Animation is developing an emoji animated movie after winning a bidding war for a pitch by Anthony Leondis (Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch), who will co-write and direct, Mashable has confirmed.
And here’s the catch: There is no catch, since no one owns the intellectual property rights to an emoji movie. In other words, Sony can make one without paying a licensing fee — and will want to do so pretty fast, lest other studios try to copycat it.
But by acquiring the pitch from Leonidis and co-writer Eric Siegel, which included a fully fleshed-out story, Sony has a smiley-head start.
