If you grew up in the 1980s or 1990s, you will know exactly the tune with which to read the next sentence. “Ch-ch-ch-chia!” Yes, Chia Pet, everyone’s favorite terrible gag gift that would grow tiny plants around an animal to give it fur, was quite the rage 30-plus years ago. And now, in 2026, a company called Rakia Media has acquired the media rights to Chia Pet with the aim of making animated movies or TV shows about it. For real. It’s not April 1.
“Chia Pets have been featured on our shelves since childhood, and we’re thrilled t…
If you grew up in the 1980s or 1990s, you will know exactly the tune with which to read the next sentence. “Ch-ch-ch-chia!” Yes, Chia Pet, everyone’s favorite terrible gag gift that would grow tiny plants around an animal to give it fur, was quite the rage 30-plus years ago. And now, in 2026, a company called Rakia Media has acquired the media rights to Chia Pet with the aim of making animated movies or TV shows about it. For real. It’s not April 1.
“Chia Pets have been featured on our shelves since childhood, and we’re thrilled to help grow the brand to new heights,” said producer-writer Adam Jay Epstein, who is among the people to acquire the rights. “We can’t wait for audiences to check out the world of Chia in theaters and screens across the world.”
Epstein, along with producers Ari Daniel Pinchot and Jonathan Rubenstein, got the Chia Pet rights for Rakia Media and its film-TV production banner, Crystal City Entertainment. The rights are owned by a company called Ad Populum, which owns tons of different consumer brands like Neca, Kidrobot, Party City, and even Graceland.
“For over 40 years, Chia Pet has remained one of the most recognizable brand icons in pop culture history,” Joel Weinshanker, the CEO of Ad Populum, said in a press release. “I’m excited to work with a team that understands both its legacy and its potential for the future.”
That last quote is the piece of the puzzle that’s missing, though. These producers want to take Chia Pet and make it into an animated TV show or movie. Okay. But what the hell is that going to be? Sure, Chia Pets come in all shapes, sizes, and even plenty of brand name licensed characters (such as Wednesday, Shrek, The Simpsons, Scream; truly, there are so many it’s crazy, and you can see them all on the official Chia site). But are we talking like a Ready Player One explosion of name-brand characters growing green grass? Is there a Chia world? Will anyone who wasn’t alive before 2000 even give a crap?
We don’t have answers to any of those questions. And, to be honest, many probably said the same thing when it was announced Warner Bros. was going to make a Barbie movie, and that worked out pretty well. Truly, anything is possible. But Hollywood digging so deep into the IP gutter that it pulls out Chia Pet truly feels like a new kind of low. But, hey, prove us wrong, Chia Pet. Grow something great.
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