The latest DreamWorks Animation title will be distributed by Universal and is a new adaptation of the literary sensation by Peter Brown.
Come September 27th in the US and mid-October in the UK there will be some celebrating to be had, for lovers of animation. And let’s face it, that means all of us who dare to dream and imagine, and still have hope for a better world.
On that day, Universal will release the latest creation from DreamWorks Animation, titled The Wild Robot and based on the beloved, award-winning, #1 New York Times bestseller by the same name.
But earlier today, while in town presenting a sneak peak of the upcoming film as well as conducting a variety of activities around the title, the team behind The Wild Robot — which include writer and director, and three times Oscar nominee Chris Sanders and the film’s maverick producer Jeff Hermann — released the latest trailer for all to watch.
In this latest sneak peak at one of the most anticipated titles of the fall, more is disclosed about the journey of robot ROZZUM unit 7134, or “Roz” for short, voiced by the inimitable Lupita Nyong’o.
Back in March, a first trailer for the animated wonder was released, which you can watch below. With Nyong’o’s singing in the background — a cover of Louis Armstrong’s ‘What a Wonderful World’ — the first trailer introduced us to the character and the surrounding nature which at once scares and engages her.
The Wild Robot is going to be released in a very important year for Dreamworks Animation as the company celebrates its pearl anniversary — thirty years of making films that range from 1998’s The Prince of Egypt, to 2001’s Shrek, from Madagascar to Kung Fu Panda, from How to Train Your Dragon, also directed by Sanders, to 2022’s Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.
Inspiration for this latest animated masterpiece from DreamWorks included the Disney classic Bambi and Steven Spielberg’s 1982 live-action film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and at a first look screening which was held earlier today in Annecy those influences were clearly palpable. But I won’t ruin it to for you by spoiling it with spoilers. You and me will simply have to wait until September to enjoy it.
What I will say is that the film’s message — that unrelenting kindness can be a necessary skill for survival in an unfamiliar world and that adaptability is key to our longevity, as a people but also as individuals — is exactly what we need to hear at this moment in our history.
Other voices in the cast of The Wild Robot include Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us, The Mandalorian) as fox Fink; Emmy winner Catherine O’Hara (Schitt’s Creek, Best in Show) as opossum Pinktail; Oscar® nominee Bill Nighy (Living, Love Actually) as goose Longneck; Kit Connor (Heartstopper, Rocketman) as gosling Brightbill and Oscar® nominee Stephanie Hsu (Everything Everywhere All at Once, this summer’s The Fall Guy) as Vontra, a robot that will intersect with Roz’s life on the island. Along with Emmy winning pop-culture icon Mark Hamill (Star Wars franchise, The Boy and the Heron), Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows, The SpongeBob Movie franchise) and Golden Globe winner and Emmy nominee Ving Rhames (Mission: Impossible films, Pulp Fiction).
Peter Brown’s book The Wild Robot, an illustrated middle-grade novel first published in 2016, became a phenomenon, rocketing to #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. The book has since inspired a trilogy that now includes The Wild Robot Escapes and The Wild Robot Protects.
The script for the animated film is written by Sanders and the score is the work of American composer Kris Bowers, whose work includes films such as Green Book, King Richard, and The Color Purple, as well as television series like Bridgerton, Mrs. America, Dear White People, and When They See Us.
Annecy is a yearly film festival dedicated to the art of animation, in all its forms. Each June, films from all over the world, as well as global entertainment companies and the media participate in the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, the much anticipated event dedicated to animation. For an entire week, Annecy gathers together the biggest names in the sector and celebrates the creative and diverse animation styles and techniques.
Images courtesy of Universal, used with permission.