Surly Squirrel

Last updated
Surly
First appearanceSurly Squirrel (2005)
Created by Peter Lepeniotis
Voiced by Will Arnett (adult)
Justin Felbinger (young)
In-universe information
Species Purple squirrel
GenderMale

Surly Squirrel is a fictional character created by Peter Lepeniotis and the main protagonist of The Nut Job franchise. He first appeared in the 2005 animated short film Surly Squirrel and the 2011 short film Nuts and Robbers. He then appeared in the animated feature film The Nut Job (2014) and it's one and only sequel The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature (2017). He is voiced by Will Arnett.

Contents

Reception

A reviewer for the Washington Post described Surly as a "selfish scurrier" with a "grouchy attitude and a "mind for schemes", concluding that "He's not a very fun character to travel with". [1] In 2014, a reviewer in IGN described the character as "admittedly quite surly", but also "trapped in a bizarre and contradictory social commentary about the importance of sharing and the dangers of socialism." [2] A reviewer for the New York Times described the character as a "dour squirrel" prone to tantrums. [3]

See also

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Peter Lepeniotis is a Canadian animator, film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known for his 2005 animated short Surly Squirrel. He adapted the short into the full-length feature film, The Nut Job, which Lepeniotis co-wrote and directed. It was released in 2014 by Open Road Films and The Weinstein Company. Due to the film's success at the box office, Lepeniotis and the team at ToonBox Entertainment greenlit a sequel, The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature, which was released in 2017.

<i>The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature</i> 2017 film by Cal Brunker

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature is a 2017 animated comedy film directed by Cal Brunker and written by Brunker, Bob Barlen, and Scott Bindley. The sequel to The Nut Job (2014) and based on the characters created by Peter Lepeniotis, it stars the voices of Will Arnett, Maya Rudolph, Jackie Chan, Katherine Heigl, Bobby Moynihan, Bobby Cannavale, Isabela Moner, Jeff Dunham, and Gabriel Iglesias. The film is an American-Canadian-South Korean co-production, produced by Gulfstream Pictures, Redrover International and ToonBox Entertainment, and distributed by Open Road Films in the United States and The Weinstein Company in international. The story follows Surly Squirrel and his animal friends as they find out that Percival J. Muldoon, the unscrupulous Mayor of Oakton City, plans to bulldoze Liberty Park to make way for an amusement park named Libertyland. They must join forces with Mr. Feng and his mice to save Liberty Park and defeat the mayor.

Callan Stuart "Cal" Brunker is a Canadian animator, storyboard artist, screenwriter, and film director. He is best known for directing The Weinstein Company's animated film Escape from Planet Earth (2013), The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature (2017), Nickelodeon's PAW Patrol: The Movie (2021) and PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie (2023) all are in collaboration with his business partner Bob Barlen, who served as a co-writer for these films.

References

  1. Merrie, Stephanie (January 16, 2014). "'The Nut Job' movie review: The grouchy squirrel might grow on you". Washington Post . Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  2. Bibbiani, William (August 17, 2017). "The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature review: This is nut a good movie". IGN . Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  3. Castillo, Monica (August 11, 2017). "Review: 'The Nut Job 2' Squirrels Away the Laughs for Itself is". New York Times .