Finally, a Monday that Garfield can feel good about. On the least favorite day of the week, the cat who loves lasagna, Chris Pratt is going to express the voice of the famous feline in a new animated film.
Alcon Entertainment is producing the film, with Sony Pictures releasing Garfield’s latest adventure in cinemas worldwide (excluding China). The release date will be announced at another time.
Although the details of the plot have not been confirmed, the film draws inspiration from the long-running comic book created by cartoonist Jim Davis. The exploits of the cynical and lazy orange idiot Garfield, owner Jim Arbuckle, and pet companion Odie have appeared in more than 2,580 newspapers and magazines since the comic strip first appeared in June 1978. Garfield currently holds the record. as the most widely used comic strip in the world.
The untitled play will be written by David Reynolds (“Finding Nemo”) and directed by Mark Dindal (“Chicken Little”, “Emperor’s New Groove”). Alcon acquired the rights from Davis, who will also be executive producer with Bridget McMeel from Amuse and Craig Sost. John Cohen (“Despicable Me”, “Angry Birds”) and Steven P. Wegner will co-produce with Alcon, Kosove and Johnson. Together with Alcon Entertainment, DNEG Animation will make animations and produce the film. DNEG CEO Namit Malhotra and DNEG President Tom Jacomb will be producers.
The upcoming film is not nearly Garfield’s first battle with Hollywood. Bill Murray voiced the cat of the same name in “Garfield: The Movie” in 2004 and in the 2006 sequel “Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties”. These films, by 20th Century Fox, were commercially successful despite rave reviews. Garfield has also been the subject of many live video films, including “Garfield Gets Real”, “Garfield’s Fun Fest” and “Garfield’s Pet Force”.
Pratt is no stranger to vocal work, having recently led the Disney and Pixar animated adventure “Onward” and the “Lego Movie” franchise based on Warner Bros. games. His cast as Mario in Universal’s new “Super Mario Bros”. The adaptation was somewhat divisive because Pratt is not Italian (nor a plumber). In this film, he will be accompanied by a star cast that includes Charlie Day as Luigi, Ania Taylor-Joy as Princess Pitch, Jack Black as Boozer and Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong.
Pratt, in human form, last appeared in the Amazon science fiction epic “The Tomorrow War” and will later appear in “Jurassic World: Dominion”. He is represented by UTA, Rise Management and Sloane, Offer, Weber and Dern. Reynolds is represented by The Gersh Agency.
The Hollywood Reporter first reported on Pratt casting.
