The Lego Ninjago Movie (Lego theme)

The Lego Ninjago Movie
Company type	Licensed toy theme
Industry	Toy industry
Predecessor	Lego Ninjago
Founded	August 1, 2017; 9 years ago
Defunct	December 31, 2019
Headquarters	Billund, Denmark
Area served	Worldwide
Products	Construction sets, collectible minifigures, video game, promotional shorts
Parent	The Lego Group

The Lego Ninjago Movie represented a discontinued collection inspired by The Lego Ninjago Movie, the third installment within the The Lego Movie franchise. This licensed theme, developed in partnership with The Lego Group, Warner Bros. Pictures, and Warner Animation Group, was introduced on 1 August 2017 as part of a marketing and licensing initiative linked to the film's launch. The range encompassed 28 construction sets, various promotional shorts, and the video game titled The Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game. Production of this line ceased by 31 December 2019.

Overview

The The Lego Ninjago Movie theme draws its inspiration from the characters and narrative of the 2017 feature film, spotlighting Lloyd Garmadon, the leader of six adolescent ninjas and offspring of the antagonist Lord Garmadon, who seeks dominion over Ninjago City. Both the film and toy collection extend from the pre-existing Lego Ninjago franchise and its related animated series, Ninjago, which debuted in 2011.

Development

Building on the achievements of The Lego Movie and The Lego Batman Movie, The Lego Group pursued a similar approach with The Lego Ninjago Movie. The creation process involved close collaboration between the filmmakers and Lego’s design team, aiming to reach a wider demographic beyond fans of the Ninjago television series, resulting in a storyline that diverged from the original show. While the film’s creative team primarily shaped both the movie and associated merchandise, Lego designers maintained character fidelity with the series. Designer Christopher Stamp emphasized an emphasis on unique vehicles tailored to each ninja, enhancing their appeal both on screen and as tangible toys. For instance, Warner Bros. recommended that Kai operate a mech in the film, which guided Lego designers to develop a complementary set. Senior Creative Director Simon Lucas recounted a "design boost" workshop held in Denmark where designers collaborated directly with the director to conceptualize essential elements such as Kai’s fire-mech utilizing Lego bricks.

Characters

Key figures featured correspond with those from The Lego Ninjago Movie:

Lloyd Garmadon – The Green Ninja; leader of the Secret Ninja Force; son of Lord Garmadon and Misako; nephew to Master Wu.
Kai – Fiery red Ninja specializing in Fire; sibling to Nya.
Jay – Reserved and thoughtful blue Ninja controlling Lightning.
Nya – Resilient silver Ninja representing Water; sister of Kai and object of Jay’s affection.
Zane – White Ninja embodying Ice; a robot.
Cole – Easygoing black Ninja associated with Earth and music.
Master Wu – Witty mentor figure; brother of Lord Garmadon; uncle to Lloyd.
Lord Garmadon – Malevolent warlord; father of Lloyd; ex-husband to Misako; brother to Master Wu.
Misako "Koko" – Formerly known as "Lady Iron Dragon"; warrior-queen turned mother to Lloyd; ex-wife of Lord Garmadon.

Construction sets

A total of 28 sets along with promotional polybags were released under The Lego Ninjago Movie theme before discontinuation at the close of 2019. In August 2017, The Lego Group collaborated with Warner Bros. Consumer Products to initiate a licensing and merchandising campaign aligned with the film’s September premiere. This launch featured over fifteen sets including notable titles like Spinjitzu Training Dojo, Ninjago City Chase, Master Falls, and Destiny's Bounty.

The premier set, Ninjago City (70620), contained 4,867 pieces arranged across multiple levels showcasing distinct zones such as "old world," "street," and "high rise," accompanied by sixteen minifigures. A second wave followed in December 2017 introducing five new sets including Lloyd - Spinjitzu Master and Garmadon's Volcano Lair, supplemented by five promotional polybags and nine key chain figures depicting main characters. Additional merchandise appeared under the Lego Brickheadz brand. The release of the Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game coincided with the film debut, featuring a bonus Kendo Lloyd minifigure.

In August 2018, a third wave arrived featuring Ninjago City Docks (70657), a substantial 3,553-piece set designed for integration with existing modular buildings and Ninjago City itself. This expansion included an enlarged baseplate and incorporated themed locations such as a harbor area, grocer’s shop, dojo, tea room, and arcade, along with fourteen minifigures.

Collectible minifigures

In August 2017, a collectible series of Lego minifigures inspired by The Lego Ninjago Movie was introduced as a sub-collection within the Lego Minifigures line. This assortment included twenty distinct characters, surpassing the typical set size of sixteen.

Lego Juniors sets

The Lego Juniors set titled Shark Attack debuted in August 2017, containing 108 pieces alongside three minifigures: Kai, Lloyd, and Great White. Tailored for easier building with larger components, the set featured a training zone equipped with a weapon rack, destructible blocks, a rotating practice dummy, a motorbike with removable flame and flag elements, plus a shark-themed vehicle with adjustable fins and two flick missiles.

Lego BrickHeadz sets

In September 2017, several figures from The Lego Ninjago Movie were released under the Lego BrickHeadz theme, including buildable BrickHeadz versions of Lloyd and Master Wu.

The Lego Ninjago Movie

The film adaptation was co-written by brothers Dan and Kevin Hageman, who also penned the Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu TV series and co-wrote The Lego Movie. Directed by Charlie Bean, known for his work on Disney's Tron: Uprising, the production team comprised Dan Lin, Roy Lee, Phil Lord, and Christopher Miller—producers behind The Lego Movie. Originally planned for release on September 23, 2016, the premiere was postponed to September 22, 2017. The voice cast featured Jackie Chan, Dave Franco, Michael Peña, Abbi Jacobson, Kumail Nanjiani, Zach Woods, and Fred Armisen.

Short films

Numerous short films related to the franchise were created, primarily distributed as extras on home media editions of the movies. Additional promotional shorts were also made available on YouTube.

Enter the Ninjago (2014)

Included as bonus content on The Lego Movie home release, Enter the Ninjago depicts a Hollywood studio executive altering the storyline to highlight ninja characters for marketing purposes. The pitch humorously describes a new ninja-themed film called "The super-crunchy ninja skateboard party movie with pratfalls slash physical comedy and cute furry animals for the international audience," which is joked about as potentially becoming the largest box-office bomb ever. This short serves as a nod to Lego Ninjago.

The Master (2016)

Premiering on September 23, 2016 alongside Warner Animation Group’s Storks and early UK screenings of The Lego Batman Movie, The Master was written and directed by Jon Saunders and produced by Ryan Halprin. Featuring voice performances from Jackie Chan (Master Wu), Abbi Jacobson (The Chicken), and Justin Theroux (Narrator), the short follows Master Wu’s interaction with an irritating chicken. It marked the first theatrical Lego short film from the The Lego Movie franchise.

Shark E. Shark in "Which Way To The Ocean?" (2017)

This short film accompanied the home release of The Lego Ninjago Movie and tells the story of a baby shark attempting to find its way back to the ocean after being fired from Garmadon's shark cannon. Its animation style mimics that of Lego instruction booklet illustrations.

Zane's Stand Up Promo (2017)

Included as part of The Lego Ninjago Movie home release, this comedic short features Zane promoting a stand-up comedy DVD.

The Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game

Timed with the premiere of The Lego Ninjago Movie, the The Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game was launched in North America on September 22, 2017, followed by a global release on October 20, 2017. Created by TT Fusion and distributed by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, this action-adventure title offers eight distinct locations inspired by the film’s narrative. It became available on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One platforms.

Lego Worlds

The sandbox game Lego Worlds introduced downloadable content featuring characters and settings from the movie, which was made available on March 7, 2017.

Publications

To complement the film’s launch, a collection of DK Reader books spanning Levels 1 to 4 was produced for young audiences. Moreover, The Ninjago Movie Essential Guide was released targeting older children, accompanied by a sticker book showcasing scenes from the movie.

Reception

In 2020, the Ninjago City set (number 70620) earned the title "Best Lego Set of the Millennium" as voted by the Lego fan community on Brickset.

The following year, Blocks magazine placed Ninjago City at number four in its "Hall of Fame" list of top 20 Lego sets, highlighting its extensive scale and intricate design. Destiny's Bounty (set number 70618) secured eighth place, commended for its exceptional detail and craftsmanship.

Awards and nominations

During 2017, both Destiny's Bounty (set 70618) and Green Ninja Mech Dragon (set 70612) were honored with "DreamToys" awards in the Licensed To Thrill category presented by the Toy Retailers Association.

External links

Official website