Development began in 2002,[5] with production underway starting in 2004, under the working title A Day with Wilbur Robinson, with a release initially slated for 2006. Anderson developed a personal connection to the main character Lewis, as he himself grew up an orphan and was later adopted. Disney originally planned to adapt Joyce's style, before it was decided to slightly rework the style due to his involvement stylistically in Blue Sky Studios' Robots. The animation crew had the challenge to animate CG humans, being inspired by Pixar's The Incredibles, while the inspiration for the film came from Disney animated classics, such as Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, and Peter Pan, as well as Warner Brothers cartoons, to capture a 1950s aesthetic. Disney's acquisition of Pixar in early 2006 led to nearly 60% of the film, including the villain and the ending, being scrapped and reworked. Danny Elfman provided the film's score, while artists such as Rufus Wainwright, Rob Thomas, The All-American Rejects and They Might Be Giants contributed to the film's soundtrack.
Meet the Robinsons premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on March 25, 2007, and was released in standard and Disney Digital 3-D formats in the United States on March 30. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise directed towards the animation and story.[6] However, it was a box office failure, grossing $170.5 million against a budget of $150 million.[7]
Plot
Lewis is an inventor living in an orphanage in 2007. His energy, eccentricity, and malfunctioning inventions frequently scare off prospective parents, so he embarks on a mission to locate his birth mother, who left him at the orphanage when he was an infant. He conceives an invention that will scan his memories and help him identify her. While taking the memory scanner to his school's science fair, Lewis meets Wilbur Robinson, a mysterious boy who claims to be from the future. Wilbur needs to recover a time machine that a tall man wearing an evil robotic bowler hat (the “Bowler Hat Guy”) has stolen. Lewis tries to demonstrate the scanner, but it has been sabotaged by the Bowler Hat Guy and falls apart, throwing the science fair into chaos. Lewis leaves while the Bowler Hat Guy steals the scanner. He plans to pitch it as his own to an invention company, but fails when he cannot figure out how to turn it on.
Wilbur meets Lewis at the orphanage and asks him to repair the scanner. Lewis demands proof that Wilbur is telling the truth. Wilbur does so by taking Lewis in a second time machine to the year 2037, which is highly advanced technologically. When they arrive, Lewis theorizes that he can simply use the time machine to go back and prevent his mother from giving him up; an ensuing argument between the boys leads to the time machine crashing. Wilbur asks Lewis to fix the time machine, and Lewis agrees on the condition that Wilbur has to take him to visit his mother afterwards. Reluctantly, Wilbur agrees and hides Lewis in the garage. Lewis accidentally ends up meeting the rest of the Robinson family except for Cornelius, Wilbur's father and the inventor of the time's technologies, who is away on a business trip. Having followed Lewis, the Bowler Hat Guy tries to kidnap him by attacking the Robinson house with a Tyrannosaurus rex, but the Robinsons incapacitate it. The Robinsons offer to adopt Lewis, but change their mind when they learn that he is from the past. Wilbur admits to lying to Lewis about taking him back to see his mother, causing Lewis to run off in disgust.
The Bowler Hat Guy approaches Lewis, and offers to take him to his mother if he fixes the memory scanner. Once he does, the Bowler Hat Guy reveals that Lewis is Wilbur's father, and that himself is the adult version of Lewis' roommate, Goob. Because he was repeatedly kept awake during Lewis' work on the scanner, Goob fell asleep during a Little League baseball game and failed to make an important catch, costing his team the championship. Goob, having been influenced by his future self's imprudent advice, became so withdrawn and bitter that he was never adopted and remained in the orphanage long after it closed. Goob’s bowler hat, Doris, is a Helping Hat, a failed and abandoned Robinson invention. They both blamed Lewis for their misfortunes and decided to ruin his life. Leaving Lewis in the future, they return to the past and enact their plan, successfully pitching the memory scanner and subsequently mass-producing Helping Hats. However, Doris disposes of Goob and uses the Helping Hats to enslave humanity, erasing Wilbur and turning the future into a dystopia. Lewis repairs the second time machine, confronts Doris in the past, and invalidates her existence by vowing to never invent her, restoring the future and Wilbur.
Back in Wilbur's time, Wilbur reluctantly attempts to ask the adult Goob to join the Robinson family at Lewis' request, but he flees in shame for his actions. Lewis finally meets Cornelius face to face. Cornelius laboratory room explains how the memory scanner started their successful career, and persuades Lewis to return to the science fair. Wilbur takes Lewis in the time machine, but surprises him by taking him back to the night when his mother left him at the orphanage. Lewis attempts to interact with her, but ultimately decides against it, content with the knowledge of his future family.
Wilbur drops Lewis off in his own time and bids him farewell. Lewis heads to the fair, pausing en route to wake Goob up at the baseball field just in time for him to make the winning catch, averting his future. Back at the fair, Lewis asks for one more chance to demonstrate his scanner, which this time succeeds. He is adopted by Lucille, one of the science fair judges, and her husband Bud, who nicknames him "Cornelius." Emboldened by his future family's credo of "keep moving forward," Lewis moves in with his new parents and begins his inventing career.
Cast and characters
Jordan Fry and Daniel Hansen as Lewis, a 12-year-old boy genius who struggles to be adopted.
Tom Selleck as Cornelius Robinson, Franny's husband and Wilbur's father.
Wesley Singerman as Wilbur Robinson, the 13-year-old son of Franny and Cornelius Robinson who is a young time-traveler.
Nicole Sullivan as Franny Robinson, Cornelius's wife, Wilbur's mother, and Gaston and Art Robinson's sister. She trains her frogs to sing and is in charge of the family when Cornelius is not around.
In addition, Joe Robinson is Wilbur's obese uncle, Billie's husband, and Bud and Fritz' brother who rides in an easy chair, his whimpers are provided by an uncredited actor. Also in the Robinson family is their dog, Buster, who wears glasses.
†Note: Lewis was voiced by both Daniel Hansen and Jordan Fry. Daniel Hansen voiced Lewis at the beginning of the film's production, and when the studio needed Lewis' lines changed, they had Jordan Fry re-dub many segments.[8][9][10]
Pre-production of the film was first unveiled during SIGGRAPH 2001 where a character resembling Lewis was showcased in a tech demo for "Project Gemini".[11] Originally titled A Day with Wilbur Robinson, production began in June 2004, and was scheduled for a 2006 release.[12][13] During the film's production, Walt Disney Animation Studios' storyboard artist Stephen Anderson decided to direct the film due to his personal connection to Lewis, since they both grew up adopted.[14][15]
The studio planned to adapt Joyce's style to the film, but due to his involvement stylistically in Blue Sky Studios' Robots, the style was slightly reworked. While still taking cues from his retro style, influenced by everything from Technicolor movies to '40s architectural design, the crew also took inspiration from the company Apple.[14] Unlike their previous film Chicken Little, a film starring CG animals, the animation crew had the challenge to animate CG humans. They took inspiration from Pixar's The Incredibles when animating the characters. They also took inspiration from Disney animated classics, such as Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, and Peter Pan, and from Warner Brothers cartoons to capture the 1950s aesthetic.[14]
While the film was in production, The Walt Disney Company announced on January 24, 2006, that it would be acquiring Pixar, and as a result, John Lasseter became the chief creative officer of both Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. When he saw an early screening for the movie, he told Anderson that he did not find the villain scary or threatening enough, and suggested that he make some changes. Ten months later, almost 60% of the film had been scrapped and redone. The villain had improved and was given a new sidekick, a dinosaur chase had been added, and the ending was changed.[16]
Jim Carrey was originally offered the role of Bowler Hat Guy, but he turned it down to star in The Number 23.[17]
Release
Over 600 REAL D Cinema digital 3D-equipped theaters presented Disney Digital 3-D version of the film.[18] In all theatrical showings, the standard version of the film was preceded by the 1938 Mickey Mouse short film Boat Builders and the 3D version was preceded by the 1953 Donald Duck 3D short Working for Peanuts.[19] The final credits of the 3D version were left two-dimensional, except for the names of those who converted the film to 3D. This is also the first Walt Disney animated film to have the Walt Disney Animation Studios logo before this movie the animated films from Walt Disney Animation Studios had Walt Disney Pictures logo before 2007.
Home media
The DVD and Blu-ray versions were both released on October 23, 2007.[20] Both versions feature 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and Dolby Digital 5.1surround sound, plus music videos, the "Family Function 5000" game, deleted scenes, and other bonus features. The DVD's audio commentary contains Anderson's narration, occasionally interrupted by himself as the Bowler Hat Guy. The Blu-ray also includes uncompressed 5.1 audio and a BD-J game, Bowler Hat Barrage!. A 3D Blu-ray was released on November 8, 2011.[21]
As of January 2008, the DVD had sold approximately 4 million copies.[22]
Reception
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 67% of 144 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.4/10.The website's consensus reads: "Meet the Robinsons is a visually impressive children's animated film marked by a story of considerable depth."[6]Metacritic reported the film had a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on 27 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[23] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[24]
Realmovienews stated that it has "a snappy plot that demands close attention as it whizzes back and forth in the space-time continuum, touching on serious ideas and proposing some rather disturbing alternate realities. And the witty story twists are handled with rare subtlety and intelligence. In the end it may get a little weepy and inspirational. But it's so charming that we don't mind at all".[25] Danny Minton of the Beaumont Journal said that "The Robinsons might not be a family you want to hang out with, but they sure were fun to meet in this imaginative and beautiful 3-D experience".[26] Andrew L. Urban of Australian Urban Cinefile said that "Walt Disney stood for fantasy on screen and this is a loving tribute to his legacy".[27]Kyle Smith of the New York Post named it the 10th best film of 2007.[28]
Conversely, A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote: "Meet the Robinsons is surely one of the worst theatrically released animated features issued under the Disney label in quite some time",[29] while Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "C" and said "This is one bumpy ride".[30]
Box office
Meet the Robinsons grossed $25,123,781 on its opening weekend, ranking in second place behind Blades of Glory.[31] Over its theatrical run, it grossed $97,822,171 in the United States of America and $72,730,548 in other territories, grossing $170,552,719 worldwide.[4]
Todd Toon (supervising sound editor/sound designer); David Kern (supervising Foley editor); G.W. Brown (supervising dialogue/ADR editor); Adam Kopald, Donald J. Malouf, Chuck Michael (sound effects editors); Charles W. Ritter (dialogue editor); Earl Ghaffari, Bill Abbott (music editors); Dan O'Connell, John T. Cucci (Foley artists)
The song "This Much Fun" by Cowboy Mouth, which was featured in the trailer, was not featured in the film or on the soundtrack. The song "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was originally from the Disneyland attraction General Electric's Carousel of Progress which was located in Tomorrowland.
The Japanese version uses "Hitomi Hiraite" by Mitsuki as the theme song.[32]
All music is composed by Danny Elfman, except as noted
Bowler Hat Guy appears as a playable character in the mobile game Disney Heroes Battle Mode.[33]
Cancelled sequel
Disneytoon Studios originally planned to make a direct-to-video sequel to the film, tentatively titled Meet the Robinsons 2: First Date.[34] However, when Lasseter became Walt Disney Animation Studios' new chief creative officer, he cancelled all sequels in development at Disneytoon, including Meet the Robinsons 2, and ordered the studio to shift its focus towards spin-off films and original productions.[34]
Legacy
A limited edition MagicBand bracelet was also released by the company to commemorate the 15th anniversary.[35]
The characters of Lewis, Wilbur, Bowler Hat Guy, Carl, and Lucille (in her young scientist judge appearance) made cameos appearances in 2023 short film Once Upon a Studio to celebrate Disney's 100th anniversary, in which they were recreated using new CGI models. This was due to the original models not being animated for over a decade, as well as updates made to animation technology since the original film's release, with rigging and rendering being reworked so they could be used with modern technology.[36]
Toy Story is a 1995 American animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the first installment in the Toy Story franchise, the first entirely computer-animated feature film, as well as the first feature film from Pixar. The film was directed by John Lasseter, written by Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen, and Alec Sokolow based on a story by Lasseter, Stanton, Pete Docter, and Joe Ranft, produced by Bonnie Arnold and Ralph Guggenheim, and features the voices of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, John Ratzenberger, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, and Jim Varney.
The Rescuers Down Under is a 1990 American animated adventure film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to The Rescuers (1977). In The Rescuers Down Under, Bernard and Bianca travel to the Australian Outback to save a young boy named Cody from a villainous poacher who wants to capture an endangered golden eagle for money. Directed by Hendel Butoy and Mike Gabriel from a screenplay by Jim Cox, Karey Kirkpatrick, Byron Simpson, and Joe Ranft, the film features the voices of Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, John Candy, and George C. Scott.
For the Birds is a 2000 American animated short film produced by Pixar and written and directed by Ralph Eggleston. It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 2001. It debuted on June 5, 2000, at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in France, and was shown alongside the theatrical release of the 2001 Disney/Pixar feature film Monsters, Inc.
Chicken Little is a 2005 American animated science fiction comedy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Mark Dindal from a screenplay by Steve Bencich, Ron J. Friedman, and Ron Anderson, based on a story by Dindal and Mark Kennedy, loosely inspired on the European folk tale "Henny Penny", known in the United States as "Chicken Little". In this version, the title character is ridiculed by his town for causing a panic, thinking that the sky was "falling". A year later he attempts to fix his reputation, followed by an unexpected truth regarding his past being revealed. The film is dedicated to Disney artist and writer Joe Grant, who died before the film's release. This also marked the final film appearance of Don Knotts during his lifetime, as his next and final film, Air Buddies, would be released posthumously.
Peter Hans Docter is an American filmmaker and animator, who has served as chief creative officer (CCO) of Pixar since 2018. He has directed the company's animated films Monsters, Inc. (2001), Up (2009), Inside Out (2015), and Soul (2020). From his nine Academy Award nominations, he is a record-three time recipient of Best Animated Feature for Up, Inside Out and Soul. Docter has also won six Annie Awards from nine nominations, a BAFTA Children's Film Award and a Hochi Film Award. He describes himself as a "geeky kid from Minnesota who likes to draw cartoons".
Bolt is a 2008 American animated adventure comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Chris Williams and Byron Howard and produced by Clark Spencer, from a screenplay written by Williams and Dan Fogelman. The film stars the voices of John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Susie Essman, Mark Walton, Malcolm McDowell, James Lipton and Greg Germann. This was also one of the final film roles for Lipton before his death in 2020, the other being Igor which was released the same year as Bolt.
A Day with Wilbur Robinson is a 1990 American children's picture book written and illustrated by William Joyce. A loose film adaptation called Meet the Robinsons was released by Walt Disney Pictures in 2007 in the United States.
Circle Seven Animation was a short-lived division of Walt Disney Feature Animation specializing in computer-generated imagery (CGI) animation and was originally intended to create sequels to the Disney-owned Pixar properties, leading rivals and animators to derisively nickname the division "Pixaren't". The studio did not release any films during its existence, nor were any of its scripts used by Pixar.
Stephen Anderson is an American storyboard artist, screenwriter, film director, and voice actor.
Meet the Robinsons is a 2007 action-adventure game developed by Avalanche Software and published by Disney Interactive Studios. It is based on the 2007 film of the same name.
Working for Peanuts is a 1953 animated short produced by Walt Disney, featuring Donald Duck and Chip 'n' Dale. It is notable for being one of their first shorts filmed in 3D. The tagline of the film is "Walt Disney's Donald Duck & Chip 'N Dale in their first laugh riot in 3-Dimension".
Bradford Clark Lewis is an American film producer, animation director, and politician. He produced Antz, the Oscar-winning Ratatouille, Storks, and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. He also co-directed Cars 2. He is a former mayor of the city of San Carlos, California.
Goob may refer to:
Ratatouille is a 2007 American animated comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. The eighth film produced by Pixar, it was written and directed by Brad Bird and produced by Brad Lewis, from an original idea by Jan Pinkava, who was credited for conceiving the film's story with Bird and Jim Capobianco. The film stars the voices of Patton Oswalt, Lou Romano, Ian Holm, Janeane Garofalo, Peter O'Toole, Brian Dennehy, Peter Sohn and Brad Garrett. The title refers to the French dish ratatouille, and also references the species of the main character, a rat. Set mostly in Paris, the plot follows a young rat Remy (Oswalt) who dreams of becoming a chef at Auguste Gusteau's (Garrett) restaurant and tries to achieve his goal by forming an unlikely alliance with the restaurant's garbage boy Alfredo Linguini (Romano).
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Mark Alan Henn is an American animator and film director. His work includes animated characters for Walt Disney Animation Studios films, most notably leading or titular characters and heroines. He served as the lead animator for Ariel in The Little Mermaid (1989), Belle in Beauty and the Beast (1991), Jasmine in Aladdin (1992), Young Simba in The Lion King (1994), the title character in Mulan (1998), and Tiana in The Princess and the Frog (2009). Since all these characters except Simba became Disney Princesses, he came to be known as the "princess guy" around the studio. He directed the short films John Henry (2000) and D.I.Y. Duck (2024). Henn spent a total of 43 years at Walt Disney Animation Studios, from 1980 until his retirement in 2023.
Dream On Silly Dreamer is a 2005 American documentary film directed by Dan Lund and produced by Tony West. Lund and West were both special effects animators at Walt Disney Feature Animation, and the film chronicles the rise and fall of traditional animation at The Walt Disney Company from 1980 to 2005.
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↑ Both Jordan Fry and Daniel Hansen are listed as voice actors for Lewis on the movie webpages for "Meet the Robinsons" on Disney, Amazon, iTunes, and other official websites.
↑ Carolyn Giardina (March 7, 2007). "New dimension at Real D". HollywoodReporter.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
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