ROLL out the red carpet The Beano is going to Tinseltown.
A new summer blockbuster by the makers of Toy Story and Monsters Inc has been likened to a long-running strip from the popular comic.
The Numskulls tells how a team of tiny technicians operate and guide a hapless man called Edd.
The premise is similar to the plot of Disney Pixar’s big summer holiday offering, Inside Out, which hits screens this month.
Inside Out’s main character is Riley, an 11-year-old schoolgirl who is uprooted from her Midwest life and moved to San Francisco.
Through it all, her emotions Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness argue over how best to navigate a new city, house and school.
The movie, which is set to be released later this month, took five years to make and was dreamt up by Pete Docter, who also made adventure film Up.
Inside Out is already enjoying rave reviews and looks set to be a fresh hit for the US animation powerhouse.
Acclaimed director and writer Docter is said to have got the idea from his daughter, Elie while wondering how she saw and made sense of the world.
The 46-year-old director has previously revealed his daughter was “spirited and goofy” but then she turned 11.
“She became a lot more reclusive and quiet,” he said.
“We didn’t literally get eye-rolls, because she knew that would get her in trouble, but she gave off that kind of feeling. And that got me wondering, ‘What’s going on in her head?’
“That’s when I thought of emotions as characters. This could be exactly what animation does best. That’s what led us on this five-year journey.”
Despite this, film fans have been taking to forums in droves to debate the similarity between the comic and film.
Graeme McMillan, of entertainment bible The Hollywood Reporter, said Inside Out would be immediately recognisable to Numskulls fans.
He said: “Like Inside Out, the Numskulls focused on a group living inside the head of an average human originally an adult male, although that was changed to a younger boy midway through the run who kept the body running.
“Unlike Inside Out, the Numskulls were responsible for more than just the emotional wellbeing of their owner.
“Who knows? If the movie is a big hit, maybe one day there’ll be a Numskulls movie all on its own.”
The Numskulls chronicles the adventures of Brainy, Blinky, Radar, Snitch and Cruncher who live inside people, running and maintaining their bodies and minds.
Editor of The Beano, Craig Graham, is flattered at comparisons between the new film and the comic strip.
“Great minds think alike,” he said.
“So we were delighted to see Pixar make a movie about what really goes on in our heads.
“But we’ve been doing that in The Numskulls for a long time.”
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