Interesting Twitter Thread Reveals Details From The “One Hundred And One Dalmatians” Sequel Novel That Was Never Filmed

The reason is - the quirky story is completely unfilmable.

Damjan

• Published in Disney
• July 28, 2022

We all love Disney, and it is because of the wonderful movies it makes. A beloved classic movie, Disney's 101 Dalmatians is based on a book with the nearly same title that is also pretty iconic.

But did you realize that the book had a follow-up? It makes sense that the live-action reboot would have the same storyline.

However, it doesn't. And the reason for that is that the plot is so absurd that it can't be filmed.

The story about the book sequel was revealed by Twitter user @SketchesByBoze. The author Dodie Smith chose to give it the title - "The Starlight Barking" rather than "The Hundred and Two Dalmatians."

The reason was probably the fact that the book was so far away from its predecessor that naming it like that would lead people to believe the story was similar to the prequel. And it is not.

Nothing in the title foreshadows the completely crazy story. According to @SketchesByBoze, all humans are asleep and all dogs in the world awaken one day with superpowers.

And it gets even crazier from there. So without further ado, here is a condensed and enjoyable account of the wacky tale.

You will love it.

Let's get to know this amazing and quirky book:

So, one morning the dogs rise bright and early and find out that the whole human population is asleep. Oh, yeah, dogs now have superpowers that would make Marvel superheroes jealous.

Pongo goes to London and meets his daughter Cadpig, who is now the PM. The entire cabinet consists of cabinet members' dogs. They decide that Cruella De Wil must be killed because she is responsible for the whole situation.

So, a squad of dog assassins (probably human assassins’ dogs) is sent to Cruella’s estate to kill her, hoping it will end this nightmare. But, they find Cruella sleeping. Now, if she is asleep, she is probably not the culprit. Who is it then, Pongo wonders.

A mysterious voice on the TV said that every dog should come to Trafalgar Square at midnight.

And then the Space Dog appears. He is Sirius, the Lord of the Dog Star. He said that the Earth was to be destroyed in a nuclear war and that he wanted to save the dogs.

Pongo, Cadpig, and the rest of the cabinet gathered to discuss the offer. They all agreed that leaving their owners is out of the question, even if it means their death.

Sirius accepts their decision and leaves, warning them first that their powers will disappear in the morning. Their owners get up in the morning, totally unaware of the drama that had transpired.

This story has absolutely everything. And we mean everything...

The Starlight Barking was released in 1967, at the height of the cold war, so it is no wonder that the main theme is a threat of a nuclear war. And there is one thing we find endearing and so true – dogs would run this planet better than us.

Even though it seems odd that Disney chose not to make this movie (especially with all the SciFi stuff it is releasing now), we are glad it didn't. When things are in the hands of greedy film companies, some things get worse.

Additionally, it would be an absolute nightmare to use CGI for this story. Whatever transpires, we're just happy to have recorded this in the archives of our ever-shrinking brains.

Dogs, please take over.

Damjan