Gutsy Frog (lost American TV film adaptation of manga series; 2013)

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Gutsy Frog 2013.jpg

Behind the scenes photo, featuring Frankie Jonas and Ian Tucker.

Status: Lost

'Gutsy Frog' was a 2013 TV movie, a live-action American remake of the manga/anime series Dokonjō Gaeru (ど根性ガエル) from the early 1970s. Several sources, including IMDb, indicate Frankie Jonas and Mischa Barton were to play characters in the movie. As of three years later, no known footage has resurfaced of the movie.

Very little is known about the film aside from the identities of those involved with the production (cast and crew) and the plot of the film which stays true to the original anime. It is possible that this may have been a pilot for an attempt at a live-action American series adaption.

According to IMDb, the plot goes something like this: "A frog is hopping in an empty lot when middle schooler Frankie trips over a rock and squashes him. However, the frog is reborn as an imprint on the front of Frankie's shirt and now gives him advice and commentary on his life."

This info is pretty much the only bit we've ever heard of the movie. The status of the film is still unknown but it likely has been quietly canceled by now. It is currently presumed that the film was never finished and thus never aired, if this is the case then it is likely that about 50 percent of the film would have been completed before the plug was pulled. There is no proof that it was canceled, however. So it is still possible that this may have aired at some time or at least saw some form of release in other regions. How much of the movie exists is unknown but there is visual proof that the film was in production at one point, that being a single behind-the-scenes photo from the set of two of the actors and their doubles.

It wasn't until mid-2015 when a live-action Japanese TV series sequel to the anime was aired, meant to be set 15 years after the original story. An American version however still has yet to see the light of day.

Sources

IMDb page

Wikipedia Page for the anime

Source of the photograph