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The Angry Birds movie nabs an impressive cast…

October 1st, 2014 by Marc Comments

Who’s excited for an Angry Birds movie? No? Us neither… but still, we’re getting one. Yay!

The movie, based on the app/mobile game (wow), hits screens next year and seems to have nabbed some of the biggest names in modern comedy movies including: Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, Maya Rudolph, Peter Dinklage, Josh Gad, Danny McBride, Kate McKinnon, Tony Hale, Ike Barinholtz, Hannibal Buress and Keegan-Michael Key. Presumably they will be lending their voices (educated guess – ed).

The movie will be produced by Columbia Pictures and Rovio animation. Producer John Cohen said:  “I’m extremely proud of this cast. Not only do we have Jason, Josh, Danny, Bill, Maya and Peter bringing these characters to life, but they’re surrounded by an all-star ensemble of emerging comedic talent — these are some of the funniest people out there today, and we’re thrilled to have them all on board.”

Angry Birds hits cinema on July 1st, 2016.

Press release:

THE ALL-STAR COMEDY VOICE CAST OF “ANGRY BIRDS”

IS REVEALED BY ONE BILLION SLING SHOTS: JASON SUDEIKIS, JOSH GAD, DANNY McBRIDE, BILL HADER, MAYA RUDOLPH, AND PETER DINKLAGE

ESPOO, Finland and CULVER CITY, Calif. USA, October 1, 2014 – Over the past 48 hours, fans of Angry Birds have discovered a reveal within the game: by slinging one billion birds, fans had the chance to unlock the voice cast and get a sneak peek at the new look of the characters of the Angry Birds feature film.

Jason Sudeikis (Horrible Bosses, last year’s comedy hit We’re the Millers) will lead the cast as Red, a bird with a temper problem. Josh Gad, in his first animated role since the global smash hit Frozen, plays speedy Chuck, and Danny McBride (This is the End, Eastbound & Down) portrays the volatile Bomb. Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs) has joined the pork side, Maya Rudolph (Bridesmaids, The Maya Rudolph Show) will play Matilda, and Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones, X-Men: Days of Future Past) will play the legendary Mighty Eagle.

In the supporting roles, Keegan-Michael Key (Comedy Central’s Key & Peele), Kate McKinnon (Emmy nominee for Saturday NightLive), Tony Hale (Emmy winner for Veep, Arrested Development), Ike Barinholtz (Neighbors, The Mindy Project), Hannibal Buress (Broad City, Neighbors), Cristela Alonzo (ABC’s upcoming Cristela), Jillian Bell (22 Jump Street), Danielle Brooks (Orange is the New Black), Grammy nominee and Latin music sensation Romeo Santos, and YouTube stars Smosh (Ian Andrew Hecox and Anthony Padilla), who have over 30 million YouTube subscribers, will bring an extra kick to this angry flock.

John Cohen, producer of the film said, “I’m extremely proud of this cast. Not only do we have Jason, Josh, Danny, Bill, Maya, and Peter bringing these characters to life, but they’re surrounded by an all-star ensemble of emerging comedic talent – these are some of the funniest people out there today, and we’re thrilled to have them all on board.”

Dwight Caines, president, Theatrical Marketing for Sony Pictures, said, “With two and a half billion gamers around the world, Angry Birds is one of those brands that can drive massive fan engagement. That’s why we wanted to bring this unlock to the fans first. Our filmmakers are cooking up a hilarious movie, and we know these fans can’t wait to see how they’re going to bring the Angry Birds’ story to life on the big screen of movie theaters.”

“We heard limbs and dialogue were all the rage in modern animation so we went all in. Not just one, but all of our characters have legs and wings! Except for the pigs, that is,” added Blanca Juti, Chief Marketing Officer of Rovio.

The upcoming movie marks Rovio’s first foray into feature films, although fans have already been introduced to the Angry Birds world with the weekly Angry Birds Toons animated series. Rovio launched the series last year through its Angry Birds game, as well as on select video-on-demand channel providers, Smart TVs, connected devices, and on select TV networks around the world. Paving the way for a full-length feature film, Angry Birds Toons has been a massive success for Rovio and has surpassed more than three billion views in its first 18 months.

Set to debut in the US on July 1, 2016, Angry Birds is directed by Fergal Reilly and Clay Kaytis, produced by John Cohen and Catherine Winder, and executive produced by Mikael Hed and David Maisel. The film is written by Jon Vitti. The film, which will be distributed globally by Sony Pictures, is produced by Rovio, and the Academy Award®-winning visual effects and animation company Sony Pictures Imageworks, headquartered in Vancouver, B.C., is the animation facility for the production.

www.rovio.com

www.sonypictures.com

Marc is a self-confessed nerd. Ever since seeing Star Wars for the first time around 1979 he’s been an unapologetic fan of the Wars and still believes, with Clone Wars and now Underworld, we are yet to see the best Star Wars. He’s a dad of two who now doesn’t have the time (or money) to collect the amount of toys, comics, movies and books he once did, much to the relief of his long-suffering wife. In the real world he’s a graphic designer. He started Following the Nerd because he was tired of searching a million sites every day for all the best news that he loves and decided to create one place where you can go to get the whole lot. Secretly he longs to be sitting in the cockpit of his YT-1300 Corellian Transport ship with his co-pilot Chewie, roaming the universe, waiting for his next big adventure, but feels just at home watching cartoons with his kids….