'Clifford the Big Red Dog' Nabs 'Alvin and the Chipmunks' Director (Exclusive)

Scholastic Media's Deborah Forte is producing what is intended to be a live-action hybrid.

Paramount’s Clifford the Big Red Dog movie project has a new leash on life.

Walt Becker, who directed Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip, has come aboard to helm the feature, which is intended to be a live-action hybrid.

Clifford adapts the children’s books by Norman Bridwell, which have made their mark on generations of kids since first being published in 1963.

The books told of the adventures of a 25-foot-tall red dog and his owner, a child named Emily Elizabeth. The girl picked up the dog when he was a puppy and the runt of the litter, but her love for him made him grow huge, so much so that the family had to move out of the big city to a New England-esque island town.

A popular animated Clifford series has been a fixture on PBS since 2000, while Hollywood has tried several times to adapt the property for the big screen. Illumination Entertainment developed an animated movie before the rights transferred to Paramount in 2016.

Justin Malen, one of the writers of the comedy Office Christmas Party, wrote the initial script that is now being rewritten by Ellen Rapoport.

Deborah Forte is producing for Silvertongue Films. Jared Mass is overseeing the project for Paramount.

Becker has a propensity for directing movies with animals in the title. Apart from helming the Chipmunks movie, which grossed over $234 million worldwide, he has directed the comedies Old Dogs, Wild Hogs and Buying the Cow.

Becker is repped by Paradigm, manager Matt Luber and Gang Tyre.