Lego is trying to really build up an entertainment empire. Not that it hasn't had a lot of specials and DTV projects before. There's like 4 Lego films in development. A Ninjago one, the obvious sequel to the first, a Batman film directly connected to those movies instead of the DTV projects they usually have, and a mystery project somehow connected to the Lego Movie. That's not counting TV shows and specials.Trying to get a piece of the pie that The Lego Movie served up, I presume.
Of course, Hasbro has an entertainment empire. But the problem is, only the Transformers and G.I. Joe movies really hit it off. Oujia was successful, but mostly due to a shoestring budget. Battleship was successful overseas where there's no board game and they supposedly changed the title and loud explody things are easier to translate. They're still threatening that Monopoly movie, they have a Jem film that doesn't sound that great (but considering their need for a girl's franchise that isn't about Ponies). But Play-Doh? There's nothing that can be done there that isn't a knockoff of what Lego did. Building and creativity is all you can get with that.
Also like how Fox has announced this one, rather than Paramount. So much for an aligned Hasbro universe.