(Updated 03/05/2024)
DreamWorks Animation is venturing into a new space: science fiction. We mostly know the studio as the home to fantasy adventures and wacky comedy series like SHREK, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, TROLLS, and THE CROODS. Now the company is venturing into the future with a new movie called THE WILD ROBOT.
THE WILD ROBOT follows, as you might suspect, a robot. At the beginning at least, the main character is more lost than wild, but we'll look at how that might change. The first trailer for the movie is stunning, and you can see that below. We'll explore the movie's origins and give you a few more details.
What's The Wild Robot Release Date?
Universal Pictures will release THE WILD ROBOT on September 20, 2024.
Watch the Beautiful First Trailer for The Wild Robot
This trailer reveals that THE WILD ROBOT is animated with the same "painted CG" style that made PUSS IN BOOTS: THE LAST WISH such a visual delight. While the art style is slightly different from that of the book, this footage seems to capture the spirit of the book perfectly. There aren't a lot of movies like this — the closest real analogue to THE WILD ROBOT is THE IRON GIANT, and that's 25 years old.
What Is the Wild Robot About?
DreamWorks Animation has released this synopsis of the movie, which is surprisingly detailed:
When Rozzum 7134 (“Roz” for short), a robot designed for a futuristic urban world, finds herself washed ashore on a deserted island, a tale of survival and discovery begins when she becomes the unexpected protector to an orphaned gosling, which she names Brightbill. Together they struggle to survive the harsh environment, but only succeed with the help of a close-knit group of misfit animals, who become first friends, then family. Ultimately Roz and company save the island from a robotic invasion by Roz’s manufacturer, looking to bring her back to civilization by any means necessary. In the process she becomes something much more than she was programmed to be, a ‘wild robot.
The Wild Robot Is Based on a Kids' Book
Part of the reason we have such a detailed breakdown of the movie's story is that it is based on "The Wild Robot," a childrens' book by Peter Brown. Published in 2016, the book was based, as Brown writes, on a desire to "tell the story of a robot who finds harmony in the last place you’d expect. I wanted to tell a robot nature story.
In other words, this story isn't as far away from other DreamWorks Animation titles as it might first seem to be. (And since Brown has already published two more books featuring the character, "The Wild Robot Escapes" and "The Wild Robot Protects," there's already sequel material if the studio wants it.)
What Voice Actors Are in The Wild Robot?
Lupita Nyong'o voices the robot, Roz. Other characters in the movie are played by Pedro Pascal (Fink, a fox), Catherine O'Hara as the opossum Pinktail, Bill Nighy as the goose Longneck, and Kit Connor as Brightbill, the gosling seen in the trailer.
The cast also features Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, Ving Rhames, and Matt Berry.
The Wild Robot Comes From the Director of The Croods
Chris Sanders, who co-directed both THE CROODS (with Kirk DeMicco) and HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (with Dean DeBlois) makes the leap up to primary director with THE WILD ROBOT. He also scripted based on Peter Brown's book.
THE WILD ROBOT opens on September 20.
All images courtesy of DreamWorks Animation.