DreamWorks Animation has optioned “The Bad Guys,” based on Scholastic’s best-selling illustrated chapter book series from award-winning author Aaron Blabey.

“Tropic Thunder” scribe Etan Cohen has been set to adapt the series into a feature animated film.

Blabey, Patrick Hughes of Foundation Management, Jeff Berg of Northside Services, and Damon Ross from DreamWorks will serve as exec producers.

A USA Today and New York Times best-seller, the first “Bad Guys” book was published in the U.S. in December 2016. There are more than 2.2 million copies of “The Bad Guys” books in print.

The story revolves around four “bad guys” — Mr. Wolf, Mr. Shark, Mr. Snake, and Mr. Piranha — who, after growing tired of others screaming and running away from them, decide to become a force for good… despite their affinity for being bad.

While he is better known for his live-action comedies like “Tropic Thunder,” “Get Hard,” and the upcoming “Holmes & Watson,” which he also directed, Cohen isn’t a stranger to the animated world. Cohen first cut his teeth working on animated shows like “King of the Hill” and “American Dad!” He also has a relationship with DWA as a writer on “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa.”

Foundation Media Partners and Berg’s Northside Services negotiated the deal for the rights to Blabey’s book series.

Cohen is represented by Dan Rabinow at CAA and manager Jimmy Miller at Mosaic.