Disney+ is eyeing one of the company’s foundational pieces of IP for its next series project.
The streamer has put into development a show called Tink that will center on Peter Pan’s Tinker Bell. Liz Heldens (Will Trent) and Bridget Carpenter (11.22.63) are teaming up to write the project.
Tink is considered a priority for Disney+, but it’s in the very early stages — so much so that there’s no logline for the project yet. Heldens and Carpenter will executive produce with former Disney Branded Television head Gary Marsh and Quinn Haberman of Heldens’ Selfish Mermaid company.
Tinker Bell, of course, is the pocket-sized fairy in J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan who is friendly with the title character but envies new Neverland arrival Wendy Darling. Following the 1953 animated film, Tinker Bell became something of an unofficial Disney mascot, providing the spark for a number of introductory title cards on Disney TV shows and home video releases over the years.
The character has been the focus of several animated movies, but a live action project has never taken flight. Reese Witherspoon was at one point attached to play Tinker Bell in a feature film, but it never came together. A Tink series has been on Marsh’s to-do list for several years — it was one of the first projects he set after leaving Disney Branded TV and signing a producing deal with the company.
Heldens and Carpenter first worked together on Friday Night Lights. Heldens is currently co-showrunner of ABC’s Will Trent; her credits also include The Dropout and The Orville. Carpenter created 11.22.63, based on Stephen King’s novel, for Hulu and has worked on Westworld and Parenthood, among other shows.
Heldens is repped by WME and Hansen Jacobson. Carpenter is repped by CAA, Artists First and Schreck Rose.
