The Wild Robot | |
---|---|
Directed by | Chris Sanders |
Screenplay by | Chris Sanders |
Based on | The Wild Robot by Peter Brown |
Produced by | Jeff Hermann |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Chris Stover |
Edited by | Mary Blee |
Music by | Kris Bowers |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 102 minutes [1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $78 million [2] |
Box office | $324.7 million [3] [4] |
The Wild Robot is a 2024 American animated science fiction adventure film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures. Based on the 2016 novel of the same name by Peter Brown, it was written for the screen and directed by Chris Sanders and features the voices of Lupita Nyong'o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Bill Nighy, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, Catherine O'Hara, Matt Berry, and Ving Rhames. The film follows Roz (Nyong'o), a service robot shipwrecked on an uninhabited island who must adapt to her surroundings, build relationships with the local wildlife, and become the adoptive mother of an orphaned goose, Brightbill (Connor).
Sanders first encountered the original book through his daughter and was offered an opportunity to direct a film adaptation at DreamWorks. The film's visuals use a watercolor aesthetic, inspired by classic Disney animated films and the works of Hayao Miyazaki. It was the final film to be animated entirely in-house at DreamWorks, as the studio will begin relying heavily on outside vendors for future films. Kris Bowers composed the score, marking his first score for a fully animated film.
The Wild Robot premiered at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2024, and was released in the United States on September 27. The film was a critical and commercial success, grossing $324.7 million worldwide on a production budget of $78 million and becoming the sixth-highest grossing animated film of 2024. At the 82nd Golden Globe Awards, The Wild Robot was nominated for four awards, including Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Score. A sequel is in development.
A storm causes a Universal Dynamics cargo ship to lose ROZZUM robots, which wash up on an uninhabited island. Only ROZZUM Unit 7134, nicknamed "Roz", survives and is accidentally activated by wildlife. Roz frightens the animals and injures herself while trying to help them, even after learning their language. Unable to find anyone needing her services, Roz signals for retrieval, but is struck by lightning and attacked by animals: While fleeing an aggressive grizzly bear, she accidentally crushes a goose nest, leaving one egg.
After Roz protects the egg from a hungry fox named Fink, a gosling hatches from it; he imprints on her and breaks her long-range transponder. Following advice from Pinktail, an opossum with several children, Roz cares for the gosling to ensure he can fly before the winter migration, naming him Brightbill, and Fink helps Roz build a shelter and they cohabit. As Brightbill grows, he learns to swim but is mocked by other geese. When Brightbill discovers Roz killed his family, he angrily disowns her and storms off.
Roz reconstructs one ROZZUM unit, who advises her to return to the Universal Dynamics factory, but Roz decides instead to finish helping Brightbill learn to fly, enlisting the help of a falcon named Thunderbolt and receiving advice from Longneck, the goose flock's leader, allowing Brightbill to master flying just in time to join the geese's migration. Roz, missing Brightbill and unsure of her continued purpose, reactivates her transponder but shuts it off immediately after Universal Dynamics detects her signal.
During the migration, a thunderstorm forces the geese to shelter inside a Universal Dynamics greenhouse, triggering a contamination alert that sets RECO robots after them. Longneck sacrifices himself so Brightbill can lead the flock to safety. Meanwhile, Roz and Fink save animals during a severe snowstorm, urging them to a truce before Roz powers down. Spring arrives, and Roz reawakens to find the animals still following the peace and Brightbill returning, hailed as a hero.
Shortly after, a Universal Dynamics retrieval robot, Vontra, arrives to recover Roz. Roz flees with Fink, pursued by RECOs dispatched by Vontra. The animals band together to fight off the RECOs, but Vontra captures Roz and starts a forest fire by detonating the damaged RECOs. Brightbill attacks the Universal Dynamics dropship to save Roz as Fink and the others put out the fire. Despite Roz appearing to have been shut down by Vontra, her love for Brightbill restores her systems. Roz and Brightbill destroy Vontra and escape as the dropship explodes.
Roz decides to return to Universal Dynamics to protect the island from future attacks, but promises to return. Months later, Roz works at another Universal Dynamics greenhouse, maintaining her memories. Brightbill visits her and the two embrace.
On September 28, 2023, DreamWorks Animation announced an animated film adaptation of the book series The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, with Chris Sanders set to write and direct, Jeff Hermann set to produce, and Sanders' longtime creative collaborator Dean DeBlois set to serve as executive producer. Other crew members were announced, including production designer Raymond Zibach, editor Mary Blee, and head of story Heidi Jo Gilbert. [9]
Sanders first encountered Brown's book through his daughter, though he never read it himself. Years later, while looking for his next project at DreamWorks, Sanders was offered an opportunity to direct an adaptation of the book for the studio. [10] Upon reading it, Sanders immediately fell in love with the story and felt he was the right person to adapt it to film. He described the book as "deceptively simple" and "emotionally complex". [11] Sanders had previously considered the idea of a creature bonding with animals in a forest for his directorial debut Lilo & Stitch (2002). [12] Sanders contacted Brown and would later describe the phone call as critical to the film's development. Brown told the production team that his intended theme for the book was that kindness could be a survival skill. Sanders sought to weave that theme through the film and felt he achieved that goal. [13] Another theme in the story that Sanders was drawn to was that of motherhood. He felt he had never done a story of this nature before. [13]
Changes were made to the book's story for the film. In the book, Roz is in constant search of a task but also in the wrong place and with no one to give her tasks. [13] Sanders felt that she risked becoming monotonous at points in the story, so he strived to make Roz constantly interesting and compelling throughout. [13] Some character roles from the book were reduced in order to give others more substantial screen time and impact. The changes to the characters and their roles were also made to prevent the film from becoming too crowded. [13]
Cast members Lupita Nyong'o, Pedro Pascal, Catherine O'Hara, Bill Nighy, Kit Connor, Mark Hamill, Matt Berry and Ving Rhames were revealed on March 5, 2024, with the release of the film's first trailer. [5] [14]
Sanders wanted Roz to be a compelling character and felt an extraordinary voice performance was necessary to achieve this. He wanted to avoid a two-dimensional fictional take on a robot, where they go straight from being emotionless to emotional. [13] Nyong'o was tasked with finding a voice for the character and evolving it as the story progressed. The actress's role was particularly important as Roz did not possess facial articulation. This meant Nyong'o's voice was the main way of signifying Roz's emotions. [13]
According to Hamill, who voiced Thorn, he learned about the film after reading the book The Wild Robot. Hamill says that The Wild Robot reminded him of his first feelings about Star Wars (1977), in which he originated the role of Luke Skywalker. [15]
The Wild Robot would be the final film to be animated entirely in-house at DreamWorks, as Cartoon Brew reported on October 6, 2023, that the studio would be shifting away from producing films in-house in their Glendale campus to relying more heavily on outside studios after 2024. [16] Additional character rigging was done by French studio Stim Studio. [17]
After reading the book, Sanders felt the story's innocent tone and natural setting required a look that strayed away from the standard CGI photorealism in many modern animated films. [11] He and production designer Raymond Zibach wanted the film in its finished state to still resemble the concept paintings. [11] To achieve this, the production team built upon the technologies used in two of DreamWorks' earlier films, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and The Bad Guys (both 2022). [11] While the characters were made up of CGI geometrical shapes, their surfaces possess a hand-painted look. This painterly style philosophy was carried onto every visual element in the film, including the sky and environments. [13]
Sanders took inspiration from classic Disney animated movies and the works of Hayao Miyazaki, resulting in a stylized CG visual style that he described as "a Monet painting in a Miyazaki forest". [18] [19] He considered Bambi (1942) and My Neighbour Totoro (1988) as the biggest influences on the visuals. [13] The works of Syd Mead served as inspiration for the futuristic parts of the film. [13]
Sanders wanted Roz's design to be iconic and memorable and one that would take its place among fiction's most famous robots. Taking inspiration from C-3PO and R2-D2 from Star Wars and Robby the Robot from Forbidden Planet (1956), he wanted Roz to have little facial articulation. [13] Sanders and the rest of the design team made several prototype designs during production. One of the designers, Hyun Huh presented his Roz design to the crew, which became the basis for the one seen in the film. The crew immediately fell in love with Huh's design, with Sanders describing it as simple and appealing. [13] Brown's original book described Roz with great detail, so Sanders and the team knew they had to leave some design elements out. Although on behalf of Brown's description of what a ROZZUM unit's purpose was to humans, they aimed for Roz's design to be humanoid. [13]
In March 2024, Kris Bowers was revealed to be composing the score, his first score for a fully animated film. [20] Additionally, two original songs were announced to be made for the film, performed and co-written by Maren Morris. The first, "Kiss the Sky", was released on August 28; the second, "Even When I'm Not", along with the full soundtrack album, was released on September 27. [21] Morris and her team of co-writers were inspired to write a second song for the film, "Even When I'm Not", which is featured in the film's end credits, when they screened the finished film. [21]
The Wild Robot had its world premiere as the opening front runner of the Toronto International Film Festival Grand Opening celebration on September 8, 2024. [22] [23] It was released in theaters in the United States on September 27, 2024, [24] and in the United Kingdom on October 18. [25] The film was originally scheduled for September 20, 2024, [26] but was pushed back a week to avoid competition with Transformers One . [24]
On December 29, 2024, it was announced that The Wild Robot will be re-released in theaters in the United States on January 17, 2025. [27]
The first trailer for the film, featuring a rendition of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World", plus a poster, were released on March 5, 2024. [28] The trailer debuted in theaters three days later in front of screenings of DreamWorks' other new film Kung Fu Panda 4 . [29] Writing for Polygon , Tasha Robinson compared the design of Roz to familiar film robots such as BB-8 (the Star Wars sequel trilogy), WALL-E (in his titular film), Baymax (from Big Hero 6 ), and The Iron Giant (in his titular film), and noted that the only words spoken in the trailer - "Sometimes, to survive, we must become more than we were programmed to be" - evoked the message of The Iron Giant (1999). [30]
The Wild Robot was released to rent on digital streaming on October 15, 2024, [31] and on Blu-ray and DVD on December 3. [32]
The film will be made available to stream on NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming service in the US on January 24, 2025. [33] As part of Universal's long-term deal with Netflix, the film will stream on Peacock for the first four months of the pay-TV window, before moving to Netflix for the next ten, and returning to Peacock for the remaining four. [34] [35]
As of January 11,2025 [update] , The Wild Robot has grossed $143.3 million in the United States and Canada, and $181.5 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $324.7 million. [3] [4]
In the United States and Canada, The Wild Robot was released alongside Megalopolis , and was projected to gross $24–30 million from 3,962 theaters in its opening weekend. [2] [36] The film made $11.2 million on its first day, [37] including an estimated $1.9 million from Thursday previews. [38] The film went on to debut to $35.8 million, [39] slightly above predictions and topping the box office. [40] In its second weekend, the film made $18.9 million (a drop of 47% from its first weekend), finishing in second behind newcomer Joker: Folie à Deux . [41] [42] In its third weekend the film made $14 million (dropping just 25.9%), finishing in second behind newcomer Terrifier 3 . According to The Hollywood Reporter , theater chains treated the unrated Terrifier 3 as an R-rated film, turning down attendees 17 or younger if unaccompanied by a parent or guardian. Distribution sources speculated that more people saw the film than reported, theorizing that a "noticeable bump" in the earnings for The Wild Robot's third weekend was the result of teenagers buying tickets to the film and then sneaking into screenings of Terrifier 3. [43] [44] The film then made $10.1 million and $6.8 million in its fourth and fifth weekends, respectively. [45] [46]
The Wild Robot received positive reviews. [47] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 97% of 241 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.4/10.The website's consensus reads: "A simple tale told with great sophistication, The Wild Robot is wondrous entertainment that dazzles the eye while filling your heart to the brim." [48] It is DreamWorks Animation's second highest-rated film on the site, behind Sanders' How to Train Your Dragon (2010). [49] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 85 out of 100, based on 46 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [50] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while those surveyed by PostTrak gave it a 96% overall positive score, with 62% saying they would definitely recommend it. [40]
Natalia Winkelman of The New York Times called the film "a dazzling triumph of animation" and wrote "this is a work that cares most about two things: big feelings and great beauty." [51] Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood said, "If Spielberg's E.T. had been an animated film instead, it might resemble what writer-director Chris Sanders has created here. However, Wild Robot weaves its own magic and for that we can all cry tears of joy." [52] Adrian Horton, writing for The Guardian said: "Clever, heartfelt and frequently stunning, The Wild Robot offers the type of all-ages-welcome animated entertainment that will delight kids and leave a lump in one's throat." [53] Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph gave the film a five out of five scoring, saying, "DreamWorks was founded 30 years ago this month, and this well-timed anniversary release is their richest, most moving film since 1998's reputation-making The Prince of Egypt ." [54] In his review for Vulture, Bilge Ebiri praised Nyong'o's performance and found that it "turn[ed] this heartwarming family film into an unforgettable one." [55]
Collider thought it was one of Sanders' best films yet, [56] while Screen Rant called it the best animated film of the year. [57]
Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
African-American Film Critics Association | December 13, 2024 | Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Won | [58] |
Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Won | |||
Alliance of Women Film Journalists | January 7, 2024 | Best Animated Film | Won [a] | [59] | |
Best Adapted Screenplay | Chris Sanders & Peter Brown | Nominated | |||
Best Animated/Voice Performance | Lupita Nyong'o | Won | |||
Annie Awards | February 8, 2025 | Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Pending | [60] |
Outstanding Achievement for Animated Effects in an Animated Production | Derek Cheung, Michael Losure, David Chow, Nyoung Kim, Steve Avoujageli | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Character Animation in an Animated Feature Production | Fabio Lignini | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Character Design in an Animated Feature Production | Genevieve Tsai | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Feature Production | Chris Sanders | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Editorial in an Animated Feature Production | Mary Blee, Collin Erker, Orlando Duenas, Lucie Lyon, Brian Parker | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Music in an Animated Feature Production | Kris Bowers | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Production Design in an Animated Feature Production | Raymond Zibach, Ritchie Sacilioc | Pending | |||
Outstanding Achievement for Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production | Lupita Nyong'o | Pending | |||
Kit Connor | Pending | ||||
Artios Awards | February 12, 2025 | Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Feature Animation | Christi Soper Hilt | Pending | [61] |
Astra Film and Creative Arts Awards | December 8, 2024 | Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Won | [62] |
Best Voice Over Performance | Lupita Nyong'o | Won | |||
Pedro Pascal | Nominated | ||||
December 8, 2024 | Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | ||
Best Original Song | "Kiss the Sky" – Maren Morris, Ali Tamposi, Michael Pollack, Delacey, Jordan Johnson & Stefan Johnson | Nominated | |||
American Cinema Editors Awards | January 18, 2025 | Best Edited Animated Feature Film (Theatrical or Non-Theatrical) | Mary Blee | Pending | [63] |
Austin Film Critics Association | January 6, 2024 | Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Won | [64] |
Best Voice Acting/Animated/Digital Performance | Lupita Nyong'o | Won | |||
Black Reel Awards | February 10, 2025 | Outstanding Voice Performance | Lupita Nyong'o | Pending | [65] |
Outstanding Score | Kris Bowers | Pending | |||
Outstanding Soundtrack | The Wild Robot (Original Soundtrack) | Pending | |||
Celebration of Cinema and Television | December 9, 2024 | Composer Award | Kris Bowers | Won | [66] |
Chicago Film Critics Association | December 12, 2024 | Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Nominated | [67] |
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
Cinema Audio Society Awards | February 22, 2025 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Motion Picture – Animated | Ken Gombos, Leff Lefferts, Gary A. Rizzo, Alan Meyerson, Richard Duarte | Pending | [68] [69] |
Critics' Choice Movie Awards | January 26, 2025 | Best Animated Feature Film | The Wild Robot | Pending | [70] |
Best Song | "Kiss the Sky" – Maren Morris, Ali Tamposi, Michael Pollack, Delacey, Jordan Johnson & Stefan Johnson | Pending | |||
Best Score | Kris Bowers | Pending | |||
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association | December 18, 2024 | Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Won | [71] |
Best Musical Score | Kris Bowers | Won | |||
Dublin Film Critics Circle | December 19, 2024 | Best Film | The Wild Robot | 5th Place | [72] |
Florida Film Critics Circle | December 20, 2024 | Best Animated Film | Nominated | [73] | |
Golden Reel Awards | February 23, 2025 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature Animation | Brian Chumney, Leff Lefferts, Randy Thom, David Farmer, David Hughes, Jamey Scott, Rich Quinn, Malcolm Fife, Dee Selby, Ronni Brown, Jana Vance | Pending | [74] |
Golden Globe Awards | January 5, 2025 | Best Animated Feature Film | The Wild Robot | Nominated | [75] |
Cinematic and Box Office Achievement | Nominated | [76] | |||
Best Original Song | "Kiss the Sky" – Maren Morris, Ali Tamposi, Michael Pollack, Delacey, Jordan Johnson & Stefan Johnson | Nominated | |||
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
Greater Western New York Film Critics Association | January 4, 2025 | Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Won | [77] |
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
Hollywood Music in Media Awards | November 20, 2024 | Best Original Score – Animated Film | Kris Bowers | Won | [78] |
Best Original Song – Animated Film | "Kiss the Sky" – Maren Morris, Ali Tamposi, Michael Pollack, Delacey, Jordan Johnson & Stefan Johnson | Won | |||
Kansas City Film Critics Circle | January 4, 2025 | Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Won | [79] |
Best Adapted Screenplay | Nominated | ||||
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
London Film Critics' Circle | February 2, 2025 | Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Pending | [80] |
Music City Film Critics Association | January 10, 2025 | Best Animated Film | Won | [81] | |
Best Original Song | "Kiss the Sky" – Maren Morris, Ali Tamposi, Michael Pollack, Delacey, Jordan Johnson & Stefan Johnson | Won | |||
New York Film Critics Online | December 16, 2024 | Best Animation | The Wild Robot | Runner up | [82] |
NAACP Image Awards | February 22, 2025 | Outstanding Animated Motion Picture | Pending | [83] | |
Outstanding Character Voice Performance – Motion Picture | Lupita Nyong'o | Pending | |||
Saturn Awards | February 2, 2025 | Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Pending | [84] |
San Diego Film Critics Society | December 9, 2024 | Best Adapted Screenplay | Chris Sanders | Nominated | [85] |
Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Runner-up | |||
Satellite Awards | January 26, 2025 | Best Motion Picture – Animated or Mixed Media | The Wild Robot | Pending | [86] |
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Pending | |||
Best Original Song | "Kiss the Sky" – Delacey, Jordan Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Maren Morris, Michael Pollack, and Ali Tamposi | Pending | |||
San Sebastián International Film Festival | September 28, 2024 | Lurra - Greenpeace Award | The Wild Robot | Won | [87] |
San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle | December 15, 2024 | Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Nominated | [88] |
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
SCAD Savannah Film Festival | November 2, 2024 | Virtuoso Award | Lupita Nyong'o | Won | [89] |
Seattle Film Critics Society | December 16, 2024 | Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | [90] |
Best Animated Film | The Wild Robot | Won | |||
Society of Composers & Lyricists | February 12, 2025 | Outstanding Original Score for a Studio Film | Kris Bowers | Pending | [91] |
St. Louis Film Critics Association | December 15, 2024 | Best Animated Feature | The Wild Robot | Won | [92] |
Best Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
Best Voice Performance | Lupita Nyong'o | Won | |||
Pedro Pascal | Nominated | ||||
Utah Film Critics Association | January 11, 2025 | Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | [93] |
Best Picture | The Wild Robot | Won | |||
Best Animated Feature | Won | ||||
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association | December 8, 2024 | Best Animated Feature | Won | [94] | |
Best Original Score | Kris Bowers | Nominated | |||
Best Voice Performance | Lupita Nyong'o | Won | |||
Winter IndieWire Honors | December 5, 2024 | Spark Award | Chris Sanders | Won | [95] |
The Wild Robot incorporates environmental themes throughout its narrative, including a reference to climate change in a sequence depicting a futuristic San Francisco with a partially submerged Golden Gate Bridge. [96] DreamWorks Animation developed the film in collaboration with both Universal's GreenerLight Program and the Natural Resources Defense Council's Rewrite the Future initiative, with environmental experts consulting on the ecological elements and a sustainability-focused PSA featuring Lupita Nyong’o. [97] The film's environmental themes were showcased at Climate Week NYC 2024, where it received a special screening at the inaugural Climate Film Festival. [98]
On September 7, 2024, when asked about a potential sequel, Sanders stated, "I would very much like to. This was a labor of love on the part of everybody at the studio, and yes, I think I'd love to go and stay here for a while." [99] On October 12, 2024, he confirmed that a sequel is in development. [100]
DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA) (also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios or simply DreamWorks) is an American animation studio owned by Universal Pictures, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. The studio has produced a total of 49 feature films, including several of the highest-grossing animated films of all time, with Shrek 2 (2004) having been the highest at the time of its release. Its first film, Antz, was released on October 2, 1998, and its latest film, The Wild Robot, was released on September 27, 2024. They have an upcoming theatrical slate of films, which includes Dog Man on January 31, 2025, the live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon on June 13, 2025, The Bad Guys 2 on August 1, 2025, Gabby's Dollhouse: The Movie on September 26, 2025, and Shrek 5 on December 23, 2026.
Christopher Michael Sanders is an American filmmaker, animator, and voice actor. His credits include Lilo & Stitch (2002) and How to Train Your Dragon (2010), both of which he co-wrote and directed with Dean DeBlois; The Croods (2013) with Kirk DeMicco; The Call of the Wild (2020); and The Wild Robot (2024). He created the character Stitch in 1985, wrote the film's story, and voiced Stitch in almost all his media appearances.
Dean Allan DeBlois is a Canadian filmmaker and animator. He is best known for writing and directing the Oscar-nominated animated feature films Lilo & Stitch for Walt Disney Animation Studios, the How to Train Your Dragon film trilogy for DreamWorks Animation, and directing the documentary Heima about the Icelandic band Sigur Rós.
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Christopher Meledandri is an American film producer and founder and CEO of Illumination. He previously served as President of 20th Century Fox Animation, and has worked as the producer for the film series of Ice Age, Despicable Me, The Secret Life of Pets and Sing. In 2021, he joined Nintendo's board of directors after working with the video game company on The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Meledandri also collaborates with Illumination's corporate sibling DreamWorks Animation.
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The Bad Guys is a 2022 American animated heist comedy film based on the children's book series of the same name by Aaron Blabey, produced by DreamWorks Animation Studios and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film was directed by Pierre Perifel from a screenplay by Etan Cohen, and stars the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz, Alex Borstein, and Lilly Singh. It tells the story of a criminal group of anthropomorphic animals who, upon being caught, pretend to attempt to reform themselves as model citizens, only for their leader to find himself genuinely drawn to changing his ways for good as a new villain has his own plans.
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The Wild Robot (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album for the 2024 film of The Wild Robot. It features the original score composed by Kris Bowers, his first for a fully animated film. It also includes two original songs, "Kiss the Sky" and "Even When I'm Not", co-written and performed by Maren Morris. The album was released on September 27, 2024, by Back Lot Music.
2025 in animation is an overview of notable events, including notable awards, list of films released, television show debuts and endings, and notable deaths.
"Kiss the Sky" is a song by American singer Maren Morris from the soundtrack to the 2024 animated film The Wild Robot. It was released as the soundtrack's lead single on August 28, 2024 by Back Lot Music. "Kiss the Sky" was written by Morris, Ali Tamposi, Jordan Johnson, Michael Pollack, Stefan Johnson, and Delacey, and it was produced by The Monsters & Strangerz and Isaiah Tejada. It was met with widespread positive reviews with many music critics praising its inclusion in the film.
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