DreamWorks Animation has a potential Oscar nominee for Best Animated Feature, releasing in theaters on September 27th with their adaptation of the New York Times #1 best seller, The Wild Robot. I do not make bold proclamations like that lightly. Still, after being invited to DreamWorks Studios on May 22, 2024, I saw all the ingredients necessary for a crowd-pleasing, critical hit that is bound to pop with its visuals and tug on the heartstrings with the story and characters.
The story follows the epic journey of a robot nicknamed “Roz,” who is shipwrecked on an uninhabited (by humans) island. It uses its programming to try to learn to adapt to the rough jungle surroundings, slowly building friendships with the animals (who the robot thinks are potential customers from its programming) and becoming the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling. Goslings imprint on the first thing that they see, so Roz has become its de facto mother even though she “does not have the programming.” This has all the looks of being a powerful story with a classic family theme of parenthood and growing up.
“…the epic journey of a robot nicknamed ‘Roz,’ who is shipwrecked on an uninhabited (by humans) island.”
Writer/Director and three-time Oscar nominee Chris Sanders (How to Train Your Dragon, The Croods, and Lilo & Stitch) and Academy Award-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o (Us, The Black Panther franchise) were on hand for a panel to give us a glimpse into their process of making the movie. Sanders stated that story and character is of the utmost importance, and he knew that he had the foundation for those elements in place after reading the beloved children’s book. Lupita Nyong’o candidly gave us insight by stating that she feels emotions deeply, which is highly useful for her acting but not so much in her personal life. “Why can’t people say what they mean?” To play the voice of the lead robot Roz, Lupita studied automated voices such as Siri (Apple’s voice-controlled personal assistant) in order to tow the delicate balance of such a character who is supposed to have emotions in check.
Chris Sanders showed the critics on hand around thirty minutes of the film, and I noticed many eyes tearing up just from this preview. The animation, story, and, sure to be also nominated music are all absolutely outstanding from what I have seen. The rest of the voice cast is a who’s who of pop culture and award winners with Pedro Pascal, Catherine O’Hara, Bill Nighy, Kit Connor, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, Matt Berry, and Ving Rhames.
The final thought that I had, besides how excited I am to take my son to see this movie, was something profound that Lupita Nyong’o said. She makes a concerted effort not to be “nice” but to be kind. That’s a lesson that we can all learn from.
Watch the 2nd official trailer for The Wild Robot here, and catch it in theaters only on September 27th!
