(Updated 11/20/2023)
For decades, Garfield, the orange comic strip cat created by cartoonist Jim Davis, was one of the most popular characters in the world. He's still one of the most recognizable, because a big-boned orange cat who is neck-deep in a place of lasagna cuts a memorable figure. Now he's going back to the big screen in THE GARFIELD MOVIE, a fully-animated feature.
Chris Pratt voices Garfield this time, taking over the role from Bill Murray (who voiced the character in two early-2000s movies) and putting him in line with veteran voice-acting masters Lorenzo Music and Frank Welker, both of whom put an indelible vocal stamp on the character.
Check, out the first trailer for THE GARFIELD MOVIE, which shows off the character designs, animation style, and previews Pratt's vocal work.
When Does The Garfield Movie Come Out?
Sony Pictures Animation will release 2024 THE GARFIELD MOVIE in theatres on May 24, 2024.
Watch the First Trailer for The Garfield Movie
Wait, baby Garfield?! There's an old screenwriting axiom that says showing characters as babies is a sure-fire way to get them on board with that character, no matter what they do later. But we're here to see Garfield snark at Odie, be lazy and devour all the food in the house, so we don't need to be converted to fans. Baby Garfield is just a bonus.
The Garfield Movie Is… A Heist Film?
Here's the official synopsis for the movie: Garfield, the world-famous, Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure! After an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father - scruffy street cat Vic - Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high-stakes heist.
We don't know how the character's trademark refusal to do anything but eat (see the line "I've never jumped" in the trailer) will mesh with the high-wire antics of taking part in a heist. Being able to finally build a relationship with a long-lost parent might get him to do just about anything, however reluctant he pretends to be.
Does Odie Talk in The Garfield Movie?
We don't know! The trailer shows Odie giving a couple of grunts and squeaks in response to stuff going on around him. That's not a huge deviation from the character, who traditionally doesn't speak. But Harvey Guillén provides the voice for Odie, which suggests that he'll get some lines, somehow.
The Garfield Cast Has a Few Heavy Hitters
We've mentioned that Chris Pratt provides the main voice of Garfield, and that Harvey Guillén voices his friend and/or foil, Odie. Samuel L. Jackson voices Garfield's father, Vic, who pulls the cat out of his house and into an adventure. And Nicholas Hoult voices Garfield and Odie's owner, Jon Arbuckle.
Additionally, there are characters voiced by Hannah Waddingham, Ving Rhames, Cecily Strong, Brett Goldstein, and Bowen Yang.
THE GARFIELD MOVIE opens on May 24.
All images courtesy of Sony Pictures Animation.