Line To Kick-Off With Products Inspired By Summer Blockbuster The Dark Knight Rises
MALIBU, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Feb. 16, 2012– Leading U.S. toymaker JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (Nasdaq: JAKK), announced today a licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Consumer Products to manufacture, distribute and market a line of novelty and large scale figures and plush under its Creative Designs International (CDI) division, based on the DC Comics Super Heroes and Super Villains. CDI will launch the DC Comics product line in summer 2012 to coincide with the release of one of the most anticipated films of 2012, The Dark Knight Rises, as the epic conclusion to filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, which is scheduled to open in theaters on July 20.
“We are confident that JAKKS will bring its trademark creativity to this new toy line inspired by the DC Comics Super Heroes and Super Villains,” said Karen McTier, executive vice president of Domestic Licensing and Worldwide Marketing for Warner Bros. Consumer Products.
The license includes the right to include in the new figures and plush line products based on many other popular DC Comics Super Heroes and Villains, including Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, The Flash, The Joker and Darkseid.
“In bringing our own extensive expertise to the development and marketing of novelty figures, large scale figures and plush based on blockbuster action entertainment, JAKKS makes a real contribution to the ongoing excitement surrounding The Dark Knight Rises and the broader DC Comics pantheon,” said John Blaney, Executive Vice President of Marketing for CDI, a division of JAKKS Pacific. “We are particularly excited to introduce to our boy audience our 30” scale, multi-articulated Batman based on The Dark Knight Rises.”
The DC Comics and The Dark Knight Rises product lines from CDI will be available at major retailers in summer 2012.
About Warner Bros. Consumer Products
Warner Bros. Consumer Products, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, is one of the leading licensing and retail merchandising organizations in the world.
About DC Entertainment
DC Entertainment, home to iconic brands DC Comics (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, The Flash), Vertigo (Sandman, Fables) and MAD, is the creative division charged with strategically integrating its content across Warner Bros. Entertainment and Time Warner. DC Entertainment works in concert with many key Warner Bros. divisions to unleash its stories and characters across all media, including but not limited to film, television, consumer products, home entertainment and interactive games. Publishing thousands of comic books, graphic novels and magazines each year, DC Entertainment is the largest English-language publisher of comics in the world. In January 2012, DC Entertainment, in collaboration with Warner Bros. and Time Warner divisions, launched We Can Be Heroes — a giving campaign featuring the iconic Justice League super heroes — to raise awareness and funds to fight the hunger crisis in the Horn of Africa.
About JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAKK) is a leading designer and marketer of toys and consumer products with a wide range of products that feature popular brands and children’s toy licenses. JAKKS’ diverse portfolio includes Action Figures, Electronics, Dolls, Dress-Up, Role Play, Halloween Costumes, Kids Furniture, Vehicles, Plush, Art Activity Kits, Seasonal Products, Infant/Pre-School, Construction Toys, Ride-On Vehicles, Wagons, Inflatable Environments and Tents, and Pet Toys sold under various proprietary brands including JAKKS Pacific®, Creative Designs International™, Road Champs®, Funnoodle®, JAKKS Pets™, Plug It In & Play TV Games™, Kids Only!™, Tollytots®, Disguise® and Moose Mountain®. JAKKS is an award-winning licensee of several hundred nationally and internationally known trademarks including Nickelodeon®, Warner Bros.®, Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Hello Kitty®, Graco®, Cabbage Patch Kids® and Pokémon®. www.jakks.com