Mike Mitchell to direct 'Trolls' for DreamWorks

GLENDALE, Calif., May 29 (UPI) -- Hollywood director Mike Mitchell and writer Erica Rivinoja are collaborating on "Trolls," a musical comedy set for release in 2016, DreamWorks Animation said.

Mitchell, who is currently directing the live-action sequences in "The Spongebob Squarepants Movie 2," also helmed "Shrek Forever After," "Sky High" and "Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked."

Rivinoja's credits include "South Park" and "Up All Night."

Twentieth Century Fox is distributing "Trolls," a movie inspired by the popular, wild-haired dolls.

The film is to open in North American theaters Nov. 4, 2016.

"Mike and Erica are the perfect team to re-imagine this film," DreamWorks Chief Creative Officer Bill Damaschke said in a statement Tuesday. "Mike's pedigree in shaping stories with already beloved characters is second to none, and Erica's amazing sense of comedy will introduce the trolls to a new generation of fans while keeping the spirit and appeal audiences have loved for years."

"The troll doll phenomenon was born in 1959 when Danish fisherman and woodcutter Thomas Dam, too poor to afford a Christmas present for his young daughter Lajla, carved a doll for her based on the legendary Scandinavian troll," the studio said in a news release.

"This modern-day Geppetto couldn't have imagined that the troll dolls would soon become one of the biggest toy crazes of the 1960s. The trolls experienced a resurgence in the 1990s and their uniquely endearing faces and shocks of colorful hair continue to capture the hearts and imaginations of fans around the world."