Leyendas (franchise)

Legend Quest / Leyendas
Created byRicardo Arnaiz[1]
Original workLa leyenda de la Nahuala (2007)
Owner
Films and television
Film(s)
Television series
Games
Video game(s)
  • Las Leyendas: El Pergamino Mágico

Legend Quest (known as Leyendas in Latin America) is an animated horror-comedy film franchise created by Ricardo Arnaiz and produced by Mexican animation studio Ánima Estudios. It is loosely based on The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame. It consists of seven films, a digital television series, and a mobile game.[1] It centers on Leo San Juan, a heroic preteen boy who can communicate with ghosts and monsters; Theodora, a sassy and quirky preteen ghost girl with a know-it-all personality; Sir Andrés, an amicable but loony old knight; Alebrije, a mild-mannered mythological creature; and Finney and Morybetta, two silent calavera children.[2] Set in the early nineteenth century, each of the films is based upon a different Mexican legend.[1][3]

The franchise began in 2007 with the release of The Legend of La Nahuala, directed by creator Ricardo Arnaiz and produced by Soco Aguilar and Ricardo Arnaiz, Nahuala Producciones Cinematograficas S.de R.L. de C.V., and Puebla-based Animex Producciones. The film was later followed by The Legend of La Llorona in 2011, which was instead produced by Ánima Estudios due to the box office failure of the film Nikté. The Legend of the Guanajuato Mummies in 2014, The Legend of the Chupacabra in 2016, The Legend of the Black Charro in 2018, Legend Quest: The Origin in 2022, and a seventh film, La leyenda de los Chaneques, released in 2023.[1] The franchise has also been adted into a Netflix original series, simply titled Legend Quest.[2]

It is one of the few film franchises in Mexico, which is a rare instance within the country's domestic film industry.[1] As such, the franchise has become widely popular within the country and often achieves successful box-office numbers, with Black Charro currently being the highest-grossing film.[4]

  1. ^ a b c d e Gutiérrez, Vicente (18 October 2016). "Ánima Estudios construye franquicia cinematográfica". El Economista. El Economista. Retrieved 20 February 2018. In Spanish.
  2. ^ a b Wolfe, Jennifer (20 February 2017). "Anima Estudios' 'Legend Quest' Debuts on Netflix This Friday!". Animation World Network. Animation World Network. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  3. ^ Gutiérrez, Vicente (29 October 2014). "La leyenda de las momias..., animación a la mexicana". El Economista. El Economista. Retrieved 19 February 2018. (in Spanish)
  4. ^ Valle Vargas, Montserrat (20 February 2018). "'LAS LEYENDAS': PRIMERA SERIE ANIMADA MEXICANA EN LLEGAR A NETFLIX". Expansión. Time, Inc. Retrieved 2 March 2017.