theatrical release date: august 3, 2007
dvd release date: november 27, 2007
corresponding collection: bratz the movie
Director: Sean MCNamara
Producers: Isaac Larian, Steven Paul, Avi Arad, Kyla Kraman, Eric M. Breiman, Benedict Carver
Writers: Susan Estelle Jansen, Susie Singer Carter, Adam de la Pena (Story), David Eilenberg (Story)
Production Company: Crystal Sky Pictures, Arad Productions
PLOT
The Bratz girls—Yasmin (Nathalia Ramos), Cloe (Skyler Shaye), Sasha (Logan Browning), and Jade (Janel Parrish)—have been best friends forever and have even made a pinky promise to always stick together. But when they become students at Carry Nation High School, they find that social cliques—and the controlling president Meredith—are determined to tear them apart! Even though they love following their own dreams, the girls really miss each other. Before long, they realize they can pursue their passions and be friends, so they set out to end peer pressure forever. Through song, dance, and, of course, fashion, they teach the whole school the true meaning of empowerment, honesty, and most importantly, friendship.
cast
Nathalia Ramos as Yasmin
Skyler Shaye as Cloe
Logan Browning as Sasha
Janel Parrish as Jade
Chelsea Staub as Meredith Baxter-Dimly
Anneliese van der Pol as Avery
Malese Jow as Quinn
Stephen Lunsford as Cameron
Ian Nelson as Dylan
Chet Hanks as Dexter
Emily Everhard as Cherish
William May as Manny
Jon Voight as Principal Dimly
Lee Reherman as Vice Principal Sludge
Lainie Kazan as Bubbie (Yasmin’s Grandmother)
Kim Morgan Greene as Katie (Cloe’s Mom)
Tami-Adrian George as Allison (Sasha’s Mom)
Kadeem Hardison as Sasha’s Dad
Constance Hsu as Julie (Jade’s Mom)
BACKGROUND
A sticker promoting the film on a Bratz Forever Diamondz box in 2006.
Development of a theatrical film based on the Bratz brand began in 2004 when 20th Century Fox was the brand’s film distributor, before going into production as a live-action feature distributed by Lionsgate. MGA began teasing the film on select Bratz Forever Diamondz dolls with a sticker promoting the film in late 2006. A teaser for the film premiered in January 2007 on the official website, featuring silhouettes of the core four characters set to "We All Can Be Starz” with an announced release date of August 7, 2007. The release date was later moved to August 3, 2007. Singer and dancer Paula Abdul was originally attached to the project, but was later removed due to unknown reasons; her firing was documented on her 2007 reality series Hey Paula.
my super sweet 16 presents: bratz movie special
A My Super Sweet 16 special surrounding Meredith’s birthday party aired on MTV on July 30, 2007. A clip can be found on the Lookin’ Bratz YouTube channel.
SNEAKIN’ ON THE SET: BRATZ THE MOVIE SPECIAL
A special to promote the Bratz motion picture titled Sneakin’ On The Set aired on The N in 2007. The special was released on a bonus disc with the film’s DVD as a Target exclusive. The full episode can be found on the Lookin’ Bratz YouTube channel.
cancelled sequels and musical adaptation
CLICK TO ENLARGE: An article from The Hollywood Reporter detailing plans for a Bratz sequel and musical adaptation. Photo courtesy of BratzWorldTV.
In a special issue of The Hollywood Reporter detailing the release of the film, it was revealed that a sequel was in the works and would likely extend into a film franchise. It was also revealed that a Broadway musical using the film’s concept was in the works. The cast of the film confirmed that a sequel was in the works in a press release interview for Hollywood.com. The sequel and musical never came to fruition, likely because of the film’s poor reception.
CLICK TO ENLARGE: Description of Bratz on the Crystal Sky Pictures website in 2006.
TRIVIA
One of the film’s screenwriters, Susan Estelle Jansen, co-wrote The Lizzie McGuire Movie. In 2006, Crystal Sky Pictures posted the following description of the film:
…the story follows Yasmin, Ari, Cloe, and Jade, 4 very different teenage girls from different worlds who bond over the ups and downs of adolescent life at Lewis & Clark High School.
Based on this description, it may have been possible that Sasha was going to be replaced for a character named Ari or the production company made a mistake when writing this blurb. The original name of the high school they attend is referred to as Lewis & Clark High School, while the name in the film is Carry Nation High School.