Written by Jonze and Dave Eggers , it is based on Maurice Sendak 's children's book of the same name. It combines live-action , performers in costumes , animatronics , and computer-generated imagery CGI. The film centers on a young boy named Max who sails away to an island inhabited by creatures known as the "Wild Things", who declare Max to become a king.
In the early s, The Walt Disney Company considered adapting the book with a blend of traditionally animated characters and computer-generated environments, but development did not go past a test film to see how the animation hybridizing would result.
Despite concerns from within Warner Bros. Max is a 9-year-old boy [ 8 ] with an active imagination and divorced parents. His older sister, Claire, does nothing when her friends crush Max's snow fort with him inside during a snowball fight. Out of frustration, Max messes up her bedroom and destroys a frame he made for her. Later, his mother invites her boyfriend Adrian to dinner. Max becomes furious with her for not spending time with him that evening as they had agreed. Wearing his wolf suit, he begins to wreak havoc in the house.
She screams in horror and he runs away from home, scared by what transpired. At the edge of a river, Max finds a small boat that he boards. Carol is in the middle of a destructive tantrum caused by KW's departure. Max tries joining in on the mayhem but finds himself facing the suspicious anger of the Wild Things.
When they contemplate eating him, Max convinces them that he is a king with magical powers capable of bringing harmony to the group. They crown him as their new king. Shortly after, KW returns, and Max declares a "wild rumpus" in which the Wild Things smash trees and tackle each other, before going to sleep in a pile with Max at the center.
