Sony Pictures Animation Unveils
Varied Upcoming Slate
Julia Roberts, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry and Sir
Patrick Stewart Join Studio’s Voice Roster;
Animated Films from Phil Lord & Christopher
Miller
and Lin-Manuel Miranda on the Horizon
Culver City, CA, January 18, 2017 – Making good on the commitment
to increase overall output while continuing to offer its distinctive mix of
family films, Sony Pictures Animation today released the project details on its
upcoming roster of titles through 2018, along with additional highly
anticipated future feature film projects, including one from Pulitzer Prize-winner
Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Kristine Belson, President of Sony Pictures Animation, says, “We
are proud of the artist-driven titles we have coming to the marketplace.
The abundance, variety and quality of the features are a testament to the
wealth of creative talents who call Sony Pictures Animation their home.”
SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE (April 7, 2017 release)
Newly
announced voice cast includes: Michelle Rodriguez (SmurfStorm), Ellie
Kemper (SmurfBlossom), Ariel Winter (SmurfLily) and Julia Roberts
(SmurfWillow), all residents of the title’s Lost Village. Special voice
cameos to include: Gordon Ramsay (Baker), Gabriel Iglesias
(Jokey), Tituss Burgess (Vanity), Jeff Dunham (Farmer), Jake
Johnson (Grouchy), and director Kelly Asbury (Nosey).
Previously
announced voice cast includes Demi Lovato (Smurfette), Rainn Wilson
(Gargamel), Joe Manganiello (Hefty), Jack McBrayer (Clumsy), Danny
Pudi (Brainy), and Mandy Patinkin (Papa).
The
feature is directed by Kelly Asbury (SHREK 2), produced by Jordan
Kerner (CHARLOTTE’S WEB) and Mary Ellen Bauder Andrews (HOTEL
TRANSYLVANIA), and written by Stacey Harman and Pamela Ribon, based on the
characters and works of Peyo. Digital animation by Sony Pictures
Imageworks.
In
this fully animated, all-new take on the Smurfs, a mysterious map sets
Smurfette and her best friends Brainy, Clumsy and Hefty on an exciting and
thrilling race through the Forbidden Forest filled with magical creatures to
find a mysterious lost village before the evil wizard Gargamel does.
Embarking on a rollercoaster journey full of action and danger, the Smurfs are
on a course that leads to the discovery of the biggest secret in Smurf history!
THE EMOJI MOVIE (August
4, 2017 release)
Newly
announced voice cast: Jennifer Coolidge (Gene’s mother, Mary Meh),
Maya Rudolph (Smiler), Jake T. Austin (Alex), and Sir Patrick
Stewart (Poop).
Previously
announced voice cast includes T.J. Miller (Gene), James Corden (Hi-5), Ilana
Glazer (Jailbreak), Steven Wright (Gene’s father, Mel Meh).
The
feature is directed by Tony Leondis, produced by Michelle Raimo Kouyate, and
written by Tony Leondis & Eric Siegel and Mike White. Digital
animation by Sony Pictures Imageworks.
THE
EMOJI MOVIE unlocks the
never-before-seen secret world inside your smartphone. Hidden within the
messaging app is Textopolis, a bustling city where all your favorite emojis
live, hoping to be selected by the phone’s user. In this world, each
emoji has only one facial expression – except for Gene, an exuberant emoji who
was born without a filter and is bursting with multiple expressions.
Determined to become “normal” like the other emojis, Gene enlists the help of
his handy best friend Hi-5 and the notorious code breaker emoji
Jailbreak. Together, they embark on an epic “app-venture” through the
apps on the phone, each its own wild and fun world, to find the Code that will
fix Gene. But when a greater danger threatens the phone, the fate of all
emojis depends on these three unlikely friends who must save their world before
it’s deleted forever.
THE STAR (November 10, 2017 release)
The voice cast will be led by Steven Yeun (Bo the
donkey), Kelly Clarkson (Leah the horse), Aidy Bryant (Ruth the
sheep), Keegan-Michael Key (Dave the dove), Kristin Chenoweth
(Mouse), Anthony Anderson (Zach the goat), Gabriel Iglesias
(Rufus the dog), Ving Rhames (Thaddeus the dog), Delilah Rene
(Elizabeth), Kris Kristofferson (Old Donkey), Gina Rodriguez
(Mary), Zachary Levi (Joseph), with Oprah Winfrey (Deborah), Tyler
Perry (Cyrus) and Tracy Morgan (Felix) as the three camels, and Christopher
Plummer (King Herod).
THE STAR
is directed by Academy Award® nominated
writer/director Timothy Reckart (HEAD OVER HEELS); executive-produced by DeVon Franklin (MIRACLES
FROM HEAVEN), Lisa Henson and Brian Henson (The Jim Henson Company);
produced by Jenni Magee Cook; with a story by Carlos Kotkin and Simon Moore;
and screenplay by Carlos Kotkin. Digital animation by Cinesite Studios.
A small but brave donkey
named Bo yearns for a life beyond his daily grind at the village mill.
One day he finds the courage to break free, and finally goes on the adventure
of his dreams. On his journey, he teams up with Ruth, a lovable sheep who
has lost her flock and Dave, a dove with lofty aspirations. Along with
three wisecracking camels and some eccentric stable animals, Bo and his new
friends follow the Star and become accidental heroes in the greatest story ever
told – the first Christmas.
HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3 (September 21, 2018 release)
Mavis surprises Dracula with a family
voyage on a luxury Monster Cruise Ship so he can take a vacation from providing
everyone else’s vacation at the hotel. The rest of Drac’s Pack cannot resist
going along and once they leave port, romance zings Drac when he meets the
mysterious ship captain Ericka. Now it’s Mavis’ turn to play the
overprotective parent, keeping her dad and Ericka apart. Little do they know
that his “too good to be true” love interest is actually a descendent of Van
Helsing, arch nemesis to Dracula and all monsters!
The voice ensemble of favorites returns, including Adam Sandler
(Dracula), Selena Gomez (Mavis) and Andy Samberg (Johnny).
Director Genndy Tartakovsky (SAMURAI JACK, STAR WARS:
CLONE WARS) is back in the director’s chair, along with Michelle Murdocca
back producing and Adam Sandler executive-producing, with a screenplay by
Genndy Tartakovsky and Michael McCullers (AUSTIN POWERS: THE SPY WHO SHAGGED
ME).
In
addition to this feature film, a new animated short, PUPPY,
directed by HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA’s Genndy Tartakovsky, will be debuting in
theaters attached to THE EMOJI MOVIE in August 2017. In the short,
the residents of Hotel Transylvania find their world turned upside-down when
youngster Dennis gets a surprise monster-sized pet!
UNTITLED ANIMATED SPIDER-MAN (December 21, 2018 release)
From Phil Lord
& Christopher Miller, the geniuses behind THE LEGO MOVIE, comes
an animated SPIDER-MAN feature starring Miles Morales.
The feature is directed by Bob Persichetti (head of story on PUSS
IN BOOTS and THE LITTLE PRINCE) and Peter Ramsey (RISE OF THE
GUARDIANS). The film is written by Phil Lord. Avi Arad (IRON
MAN, SPIDER-MAN), Amy Pascal (SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING), Phil Lord &
Christopher Miller (Untitled HAN SOLO Movie) are executive producing;
Christina Steinberg (TROLLHUNTERS) is producing.
VIVO (December 18, 2020 release)
Lin-Manuel Miranda, the award-winning (Emmy, Tony, Grammy,
Olivier, Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient) creative force
behind the groundbreaking Broadway musical HAMILTON, writes new songs
for this musical animated feature. Academy
Award® nominated director Kirk De Micco (THE CROODS) is set to
helm a script by Pulitzer Prize winner Quiara Alegría Hudes (IN THE HEIGHTS).
Academy Award® nominated producer
Laurence Mark (DREAMGIRLS, JULIE & JULIA) serves as executive
producer, and Lisa Stewart (ALMOST FAMOUS) produces.
ABOUT SONY PICTURES ANIMATION
Sony Pictures Animation produces a variety of animated and family
entertainment for audiences around the world. The studio is
following its worldwide comedy hits—the record-breaking monster comedies Hotel
Transylvania and Hotel Transylvania 2, the hybrid live
action/animated blockbusters The Smurfs and The Smurfs 2, and the mouth-watering Cloudy
with a Chance of Meatballs movies—with the fully animated
reboot Smurfs: The Lost Village in April 2017; a surprising and comic
take at the secret world inside our phones with The Emoji Movie in
August 2017; the inspirational The Star in November 2017; Hotel
Transylvania 3 in September 2018; and an animated Spider-Man feature
from the minds of directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord in December 2018. The studio, in
conjunction with Aardman Animations, has produced two critically acclaimed
feature films: the CG-animated family comedy Arthur Christmas;
and the Academy Award® nominated stop-frame animated high-seas adventure, The
Pirates! Band of Misfits. In 2007, Surf's Up also
received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Animated Feature Film; a
sequel entitled Surf’s Up 2: WaveMania now available on DVD and
digital. The division, whose first feature film Open Season led
to a very successful movie franchise including the brand new Open Season:
Scared Silly now available on digital, DVD and Blu-ray, was founded in
2002. Sony Pictures Animation is a division of the Sony Pictures
Motion Pictures Group.
Twitter: http://twitter.com/sonyanimation
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/SonyAnimation
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