Hasbro is planning a My Little Pony movie for 2017. The animated adventure will join Jem and the Holograms as the second Hasbro property to be developed into a feature film at Allspark Pictures, a new label the company is self-financing. They may later team-up with other production houses to co-finace a slate of upcoming movie projects.

Allspark has already teamed up with Jason Blum of Blumhouse, who is co-producing the live-action Jem and the Holograms, with Universal Pictures set to distribute and co-finance that movie's budget. Jem and the Holograms will be released in October 2015.

Hasbro is producing and financing the new My Little Pony movie in-house. It is currently in discussions with a number of studios to release the movie on 'the broadest number of screens'. Explains president of Hasbro Studios and global entertainment and licensing for Hasbro Inc. Stephen Davis:

"We've very excited about the potential of that movie."

Ice Age: Continental Drift writer Joe Ballarini is penning the My Little Pony script. Megan McCarthy, who produces and writes for My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and the straight-to-video feature films My Little Pony: Equestria Girls and My Little Pony: Equestria Girls - Rainbow Rock will serve as a co-executive producer on this new animated movie.

Originally developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger and Steve D'Aguanno, My Little Pony and Friends debuted in 1983 as a toy and animated series. The colorful horses are marked by their distinctive manes and 'cutie marks' on their flanks. Over the past four decades there have been four different animated series, with the toys strongest sales coming in the 1980s and again in 2010 with the launch of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.

Hasbro is partnered on Blumhouse's next release Ouija, which is in theaters October 24 from Universal. It is based on the Hasbro board game and is directed by Stiles White. Hasbro does not plan to turn its back on big budget movies such as its Transformers and G.I. Joe franchises. Explains Stephen Davis:

"We will continue to make big tentpole movies with our studio partners, but there is another set of movies where we feel we have an opportunity to have a bit more control over the budgeting, financing, calendarization, marketing and creative of our films. There are new economic models that fit certain films."