Big Idea Productions has changed hands again, but officials for the company that created VeggieTales say the organization has a bright future with a major movie in the works of the popular children's series.

U.K.-based Entertainment Rights has purchased U.S.-based Classic Media Holdings, Inc., which bought Big Idea after the company filed for bankruptcy in 2003. Entertainment Rights (ER) owns the rights to many characters, including Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, Postman Pat, and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.

Terry Pefanis, Big Idea's chief operating officer, said it is “business as usual” for the company in light of the acquisition in the January deal. Word Distribution will continue to distribute VeggieTales to the Christian retail channel, he added.

Pefanis told Christian Retailing that the acquisition benefits Big Idea because “ER is a leader in children's entertainment brands in the U.K. and Europe. We will work closely with ER to launch VeggieTales in Europe and worldwide. Big Idea and Universal Pictures are currently in production on a new feature film, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie, to release in winter 2008.

Greg Fitz, Big Idea's vice president of marketing, said that there was a “very comprehensive plan to engage the Christian community around the film. We've built it from the ground up with Christian-retail input.”

Read the full report in the May 7 issue of Christian Retailing.