Uncle Bobby’s Wedding, the tale of a girl worried that her favorite uncle will no longer have time for her after he marries his boyfriend, is becoming an animated television special. This has long been one of my favorite picture books, and I’m thrilled by the news.
The children’s division of U.K. network Sky is developing the 30-minute Uncle Bobby’s Wedding show. The effort is led by former Moonbug Entertainment (Cocomelon) and Disney executive David Levine’s Lightboat Media, which focuses on LGBTQ-inclusive content development, reports Deadline. Michael Vogel (My Little Pony, Strawberry Shortcake, Transformers) will be the scriptwriter.
The book, written by Sarah Brannen, was first published in 2008 with illustrations by Brannen, depicting the characters as anthropomorphic guinea pigs. It was one of the first LGBTQ-inclusive picture books that wasn’t “about” being LGBTQ, and one of the first from a major publisher. Chloe’s concern was always about her uncle’s attention, not the gender of his beloved Jamie.
The story was rereleased in 2020 by Little Bee Books in partnership with GLAAD, with new illustrations by Lucia Soto showing an all-human cast, and some tweaks to the text by Brannen. As Brannen told me in a 2020 interview about the revamp, “I had chosen animals originally to make the story universal, but I really wrote it about people. Maybe animals made the story more accessible in 2008, but in 2020, it seems appropriate to let my characters inhabit their true form.” Presumably they will continue to inhabit human form for the television version (a decision I agree with, despite the missed opportunity for adorable guinea pig merch).
The show will be released in June 2025. Lightboat is still looking for distribution partners, according to Deadline, but Little Bee said on Instagram that it “is coming to TVs everywhere,” so stay tuned for details.
The original Uncle Bobby’s Wedding was the eighth most challenged book in the U.S. in 2008, according to the American Library Association, and continues to be challenged in recent years, with the Escambia County Public School District in Florida banning it pending investigation. Brannen is among the authors suing the district for violating the First Amendment.
As it happens, I broke the story of the very first challenge to the book, just a few months after its original release, when a Colorado library patron asked that the book be removed, placed in a special area, or labeled “some material may be inappropriate for young children.” Clearly, though, the bans haven’t slowed the book’s success or appeal. Ian France, Commissioning Editor at Sky Kids, told Deadline, “Our daughter brought Uncle Bobby’s Wedding home from school to read with her daddies, and we were all immediately taken with the story of change, inclusivity, and love.”
Levine added, “It’s a universal story for anyone about to get a new person in their life and worried about the changes.”
I hope this news bodes well for TV or movie adaptations of other LGBTQ-inclusive kids’ books. I’ve long said that Newbery and two-time Stonewall Award winner Kyle Lukoff’s Max and Friends books would make a terrific ongoing TV series—and there are any number of middle-grade books that could spark blockbuster movies, plus many other possibilities.
I can’t wait to see Uncle Bobby, Chloe, and Jamie on screen. Kudos to Levine, France, Brannen, Little Bee, GLAAD, and all of the many people working to make this happen.