Nimona

Blue Sky Studios, then owned by Disney after the Fox acquisition, began developing Nimona but was shut down by Disney in February 2021, leaving the film without a studio. Netflix acquired the project later in 2021, with production taken over by Annapurna Pictures and the animation studio DNEG (Double Negative). The film was finally released on Netflix in June 2023, roughly four years after its original planned 2020 release.

The film adapts ND Stevenson's webcomic-turned-graphic-novel (published by HarperTeen in 2015) closely in spirit and character dynamics, though it streamlines some subplots and shifts certain character relationships. The core story—Ballister Blackheart, a knight framed for a crime, and Nimona, a chaotic shapeshifter who appoints herself his sidekick—remains intact. The film also places greater emphasis on the medieval-meets-science-fiction worldbuilding and the themes of institutional prejudice.

The film was produced by Annapurna Pictures and animated by DNEG (Double Negative), with Netflix distributing it globally on its streaming platform. DNEG, primarily known for visual effects on films like 'Dune' and 'Tenet,' handled the full animation pipeline for Nimona. Directors Nick Bruno and Troy Quane, who previously directed 'Spies in Disguise' at Blue Sky, carried the project from Blue Sky to its final Netflix release.

Nimona is rated PG and is generally appropriate for older children and pre-teens, though it deals with themes of persecution, identity, and implied homophobia within its medieval-futuristic setting. The film contains action violence and some emotionally intense scenes that may be heavy for younger viewers. It was widely praised by critics for its LGBTQ+ representation, which is handled more overtly in the film than in the original webcomic's early chapters.