Tag Archives: Andrew Stanton

‘Finding Nemo 2′ Gets Its Official Title: ‘Finding Dory’

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Finding Nemo 2 Gets Its Official Title: Finding Dory

“Finding Nemo 2” finally has an official — and telling — name: “Finding Dory.” Walt Disney Pictures announced the detail about the long-anticipated sequel, which takes place a year after the events of “Finding Nemo.”

“I have waited for this day for a long, long, long, long, long, long time,” Ellen DeGeneres said in a press release. “I’m not mad it took this long. I know the people at Pixar were busy creating ‘Toy Story 16.’ But the time they took was worth it. The script is fantastic. And it has everything I loved about the first one: It’s got a lot of heart, it’s really funny, and the best part is — it’s got a lot more Dory.”

In addition to more Dory, the new movie will include more of Dory’s history. The Disney press release says that “Finding Dory” will feature the return of Marlin, Nemo and the Tank Gang, be partially set on the coast of California and introduce “a host of new characters, including a few who will prove to be a very important part of Dory’s life.”

“There is no Dory without Ellen,” director Andrew Stanton said. “She won the hearts of moviegoers all over the world — not to mention our team here at Pixar. One thing we couldn’t stop thinking about was why she was all alone in the ocean on the day she met Marlin. In ‘Finding Dory,’ she will be reunited with her loved ones, learning a few things about the meaning of family along the way.”

“Finding Dory” is due in theaters on November 25, 2015.

Are you sold on “Finding Dory”? Are you glad it’s going to be a Dory-centric story? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!

Albert Brooks To Return In ‘Finding Nemo’ Sequel

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Albert Brooks To Return In Finding Nemo Sequel

Marlin might have already found Nemo, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have a role to play in the upcoming “Finding Nemo 2.” It’s being reported that Albert Brooks will return as the father clownfish in the new movie.

Deadline has the news, though it’s unclear what role Marlin will have in the movie. He’ll rejoin original director Andrew Stanton and fellow voice actor Ellen DeGeneres in the upcoming flick.

But what of Alexander Gould, who voiced Nemo in “Finding Nemo“? And considering the tiny clownfish has already been found, what will “Finding Nemo 2″ be about? That remains to be seen, but at least Stanton seems optimistic about the project.

“There are some stories, there are some characters, there are some subplots that do benefit, if handled correctly, by going longer,” he said at the 2012 Hero Complex Film Festival. “I’m sure you’ll see some other sequels of things as they grow because now we [Pixar] are not so blinded. It’s the originals that keep us really going and it’s the sequels that are like comfort food, and I think it’s the same way for the audience.”

“Finding Nemo 2″ is due out in 2016, 13 years after “Finding Nemo” first hit theaters.

What do you hope “Finding Nemo 2″ is about? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!

Ellen Degeres Back For ‘Finding Nemo 2′, ‘Despicable Me’ Spinoff Get Release Date

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c9352 Finding Nemo Ellen Degeres Back For Finding Nemo 2, Despicable Me Spinoff Get Release Date

Today is a great day for the animation world. We have new information about the upcoming sequel to “Finding Nemo” and spinoff of “Despicable Me” that should have fans of both films jumping for joy.

First up, “Nemo.” The Hollywood Reporter has learned that Ellen Degeneres, who voiced the fan-favorite fish Dory in the first “Finding Nemo” movie, is in talks to return for the sequel. “Finding Nemo 2″ isn’t officially announced yet despite reports confirming its creation, so this isn’t much of a surprise. Original writer and director Andrew Stanton is slated to return to the project with his own new concept, while Victoria Strouse is writing the script.

While he was speaking at the Hero Complex Film Festival back in May, Stanton had said that he and his peers at Pixar had been trying to figure out a way to make a sequel to “Finding Nemo.” He said that the success of “Toy Story 2″ sold him on the idea of making follow-up movies.

“There are some stories, there are some characters, there are some subplots that do benefit, if handled correctly, by going longer,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll see some other sequels of things as they grow because now we [Pixar] are not so blinded. It’s the originals that keep us really going and it’s the sequels that are like comfort food, and I think it’s the same way for the audience.”

If that’s the comparison, then “Despicable Me’s” Minions spinoff movie has got to be some of the best comfort food of all. Universal Pictures has announced the release date for the untitled Illumination Entertainment project. The Minions movie is coming out December 19, 2014, while “Despicable Me 2″ is hitting theaters July 3, 2013.

Are you excited for these two planned projects? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter.

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‘Finding Nemo’ Sequel Actually Happening With Director Andrew Stanton

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4dfd3 Finding Nemo Finding Nemo Sequel Actually Happening With Director Andrew Stanton

By Meg Malone

Let the happy memories of swimming along with Marlin and Dory (well, minus a few perils of the ocean here and there) come flooding back, because there’s some exciting news on the Pixar front. In an exclusive report, Deadline confirmed that Andrew Stanton will be back for the sequel to the 2003 underwater adventure, “Finding Nemo.”

Stanton directed and also co-wrote the screenplay for the original “Finding Nemo,” which won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. He later directed “Wall-E,” which also earned an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, and more recently, Stanton directed the live-action “John Carter,” which premiered in March but unfortunately wasn’t as hot a box office commodity as was hoped.

Deadline reported that the studio is said to be impressed with the concept Stanton has for the “Finding Nemo” sequel — though, Deadline also noted that when it comes to development, Pixar doesn’t provide comments. According to The Hollywood Reporter, in addition to Stanton joining the sequel as the director, the film will also be written by Victoria Strouse and produced by Lindsey Collins, and there is a potential 2016 theatrical release.

Spoiler Alert: Nemo was found by the end of the first movie, so we’re wondering what direction this new project may take. I’m hoping we won’t have to completely re-live the stress of Nemo’s disappearance for a second time for the sake of avoiding emotional trauma. In any case, the ocean is a pretty big place, so we’re sure something good will be dreamed up for our aquatic friends.

If you absolutely cannot wait for the sequel, fear not because as Deadline reminded us in their report, this September, “Finding Nemo” will be getting a 3-D theatrical re-release. I would love if some sort of marketing push was done to make 3-D goggles instead of 3-D glasses. Let’s get that petition started!

What do you think a “Finding Nemo” sequel could look like? Let us know in the comments and on Twitter!

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Taylor Kitsch Stands By ‘John Carter’

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Taylor Kitsch will be battling aliens this summer when “Battleship” hits theaters next month, and that’s not his first time fighting enemies from space this year. Of course, “John Carter” didn’t exactly light up the box office, but Kitsch is still very proud of his work on the Mars-set science fiction flick.

“My heart was in that film and I’m very proud,” he told MTV News during a recent interview at CinemaCon. “I’m standing by it.”

The movie was a labor of love for Kitsch and director Andrew Stanton, but it didn’t resonate with audiences in the way it was intended. Kitsch clearly still loves the film, and is upset that it didn’t do as well as many had hoped.

“It is sh–ty, of course. It is sh–ty, and it happens. Every movie I’m going to do is a risk, and I’m not going to stop taking them,” he said. “So it’s exciting to have these two come up, and I definitely mourned, had my moment with it, talked to Stants forever about it, and I’m going to work with Stants again. It’s not going to stop any of that kind of stuff. So yeah, it is what it is.”

When asked if he thinks “John Carter‘s” failure to succeed in the box office could be attributed to any specific thing, Kitsch played coy.

“To each their own. If someone wants to point a finger, that’s okay,” he said with a smile. “It truly is a waste of energy to worry about variables out of my control.”

You can find out more from Kitsch about “Battleship” during tonight’s MTV First.

Are you bummed “John Carter” didn’t do better in theaters? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!

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Top Five Environmentally Friendly Animated Flicks

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fa0d9 lorax wide Top Five Environmentally Friendly Animated Flicks

Not all moviegoers want their movies dripping with heavy-handed moral messages, but when they’re presented as part of the colorful, warm fuzzy goodness of an animated film, somehow said message or moral is easier to swallow. The latest entrant into the animated movie with a message canon is “The Lorax,” Dr. Seuss’ classic story about a young boy who must save endangered trees in hopes of winning a girl’s heart.

In celebration of the cute, fluffy friend of trees The Lorax (voiced by Danny DeVito), here are the top five animated movies with an environmental message.

5. “Happy Feet”
Although the plot of this Oscar-winner for Best Animated Feature Film revolves around Mumble the penguin (Elijah Wood) learning to dance to the beat of his own drum, literally, the third act reveals a glaringly obvious message about over fishing in the Arctic and general ocean pollution. The animated penguins are so cute and the voice cast so fun (Wood, Brittany Murphy, Robin Williams, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman) that you can look past the not very subtle subtext.

4. “Avatar”
Speaking of subtlety, James Cameron’s history-making blockbuster “Avatar” is/was the opposite. Plenty points can be and have been made about Cameron and Co.’s use of groundbreaking computer technology and motion capture that made for a dazzling cinematic spectacle, but let’s not forget the fact that the story revolves around the moral issues surrounding deforestation, globalization and displacing indigenous populations for the sake of extracting natural resources.

3. “The Rescuers Down Under”
Because I loved this movie when it came out and still love it to this day, Disney’s “The Rescuers Down Under” comes in at number three on this list. I know there are other animated films that likely touched on this issue before, but “Down Under” is the first film I remember to touch on the subject of poaching. The plot revolves around a young boy who befriends a giant golden eagle Marahute and is later kidnapped and used as bait for villainous poacher McLeach. Enter the littlest and cutest heroes ever, Rescue Aid Society agents Bernard and Bianca, to the rescue! Bonus fact courtesy Wikipedia: the film was Eva Gabor’s final role before her retirement in 1994 and death in 1995.

2. “Wall-E”
Find me someone who doesn’t love almost everything about “Wall-E” and I can assure you I will not like him or her. This movie has everything: action, adventure, romance, amazing animation and a not-at-all thinly veiled warning about treating Mother Earth and our bodies with much better care than we currently do. The 2008 critically-acclaimed, bona fide box office hit for Pixar and director Andrew Stanton received countless accolades and won a slew of awards including an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and two Grammy Awards.

1. “FernGully: The Last Rainforest”
“FernGully” edges out “Wall-E” for the number one spot here because of its nostalgia factor and my attachment to it. Also because it is serious about its environmental message of “Don’t cut down the Rainforests!” which, in addition to concerns over the holes in the ozone, are the first specific issues I remember being aware of when I started paying attention to alarm bells set off by environmentalists. Other reasons why this film rules: Tim Curry voiced the villainous Hexxus (a caricature of big bad oil company Exxon, perhaps?), along with Robin Williams, Christian Slater, Cheech Marin and Tone Loc who voiced supporting characters. The soundtrack features the most delightful mixed bag of songs sung by Williams, Loc, Curry, Raffi, Sheena Easton and Elton John.

» Honorable mention goes to “The Secret of NIMH” for its ballsy adult-themed anti-animal testing subplot and for scaring the crap out of me as a kid.

Tell us what you think in the comments section and on Twitter!

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‘John Carter’ Early Reviews Have Arrived!

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Disney has lifted the embargo, and the early reviews for “John Carter” are here.

Critics are split on whether the fantasy epic lives up to expectations, but the resounding response is that “John Carter” should be seen and discussed, an unfortunately rare quality in blockbusters recently.

Drew McWeeny at HitFix expressed amazement that a movie of this scope could still be made and took an overall positive stance saying, “The good news is that Andrew Stanton, one of the cornerstones of Pixar and the director of both ‘Finding Nemo‘ and ‘WALL-E,’ has made a nimble jump to live-action, and much of his movie is imbued with a wild, thrilling pulp energy and a genuine sense of wonder. It is a charming science-fiction adventure that makes no apologies for what it is.”

More specifically, many writers, including Badass Digest’s Devin Faraci, singled out Lynn Collins‘s performance as the Martian princess Dejah Thoris. “Lynn Collins is magnificent as Martian princess Dejah Thoris. Rarely has a female character like this been seen in a boy-centric blockbuster; Dejah is a scientist as well as a princess, and a fierce warrior as well as a totally sexy bombshell.” Faraci wrote. “Dejah Thoris is the best female character in science fiction/fantasy cinema since Ripley.”

Harry Knowles, who at one point was involved in developing the stories for the screen, tweeted a short opinion saying, “JOHN CARTER is spectacular. The second that Edgar sits to begin reading Uncle Jack’s diary… pure magic till the end.”

One of the common threads through both McWeeny’s and Faraci’s reviews was an issue with Taylor Kitsch during the opening sequence set in the time of the Civil War. Both write-ups describe Kitsch as effective overall, but too modern for the historical setting.

Critics and journalists have been seeing “John Carter” for weeks, but thanks to Disney’s embargo, couldn’t share their thoughts, something they all seemed eager to do. With the embargo set to expire only two days before the release date, writers would have to wait until the very last moment to share their recommendations, which generally seemed positive even before they could officially say.

A marketing campaign that left much to be desired and weeks of pleas from writers led to Disney abruptly lifting the embargo on reviews Thursday night (March 1).

“John Carter” opens in theaters March 9.

Are you looking forward to “John Carter”? Let us know what you think in the comments below and on Twitter!

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John Carter Plays Hard-To-Get In Exclusive New Clip

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As part of “MTV First: ‘John Carter,’ “ the man himself, Taylor Kitsch, sat down with MTV News’ Josh Horowitz to talk about his upcoming movie and share an exclusive clip.

In the never-before-seen clip from “John Carter,” the titular hero plays a little hard to get with the Princess of Mars, Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). Carter needs to find a way back to Earth after his unintentional trip to Mars, or Barsoom, depending on which planet you call home, but he’s not exactly trusting of the Martian princess.

The plot may seem a bit convoluted, but Kitsch said that it all boils down to a story about a man. “The core of it is truly a guy that’s been broken,” he said. “He lost his family and gets transported on to Mars, as you do, and has this opportunity in front of him. The people, a woman, Dejah Thoris, pulls it out of him. To use clichés, puts that light back on within himself. He finds that cause again.”

The story of “John Carter” began with an 11-book series by “Tarzan” author Edgar Rice Burroughs, initially released “almost 100 years to the day, by the way, which is incredible to this release,” Kitsch said. A handful of directors have attempted to adapt the classic stories, but none was successful until Andrew Stanton, director of “WALL-E” and “Finding Nemo,” created this version.

As soon as Kitsch met Stanton, he knew that he needed to be a part of the project. “I had an amazing first general meeting with Stanton. You walk into this room, and it’s floor-to-ceiling preparation,” Kitsch said. “The beauty of this meeting — and that’s when you know you’re safe as an actor — is that he didn’t talk about budget, didn’t talk about the grandeur of it all, the scope. It was truly just the character of Carter. I walked out of that meeting and was like, ‘OK, my hat’s in the ring. I’m going to do whatever I’ve got to do to get this role.’ ”

Getting the role was only the beginning of Kitsch’s work. He quickly went on a strict routine in order to prepare for his mostly shirtless role. “It was the diet and training regimen, start to finish, for about 11 months, and then it was sword training, wire work and just trying to stay in that shape for seven months is a tough go,” he said.

But even that kind of physical prep wasn’t enough to ward off some of the injuries that come from jumping around Barsoom. Kitsch listed his injuries for MTV News, of which there were many. “High ankle sprain. Both groins were pulled. Hamstring pull. Arm went numb. Shoulder strain,” he said. “Chest got cut open quite intently. It was a bloody mess. Then you got Stanton going, ‘Action. Let him bleed.’ ”

The movie lands in theaters March 9.

Check out everything we’ve got on “John Carter.”

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

‘John Carter’ Director Andrew Stanton Credits Fandom For Film’s Release

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It had to take something really special to get Andrew Stanton to make the jump from animated films to live action. The man best known for his work on “Wall-E,” “Finding Nemo” and “A Bug’s Life” makes his debut as a (mostly) live-action director with “John Carter,” out March 9. It’s a pretty big change from what fans are used to seeing from him, and that’s because “John Carter” has been something of a passion project for him.

Stanton recently sat down with MTV News to talk about the upcoming release of the movie. It’s been a project that has been floating around Hollywood for a while now, as Edgar Rice Burroughs’s “Barsoom” series has been the inspiration for many other science fiction projects — like “Star Wars” and “Flash Gordon” — and deserved to get the big screen treatment as well. Stanton said that he felt that we are finally at a point when Hollywood is capable of doing John Carter’s story justice, and that is why he pushed to get the movie made now.

“The only reason that I’m attached to this thing and it got on to the screen is because of the fandom,” Stanton explained. “It was not a career move, it was not a filmmaker choice. If it takes my influence with Disney from other things to convince them this is a property that needs to get on to the screen, then fine, I’ll use it.”

Earlier I wrote that the movie was “mostly” live-action because it’s actually very CGI-heavy. From the Mars setting with its alien inhabitants to the giant beasts seen in some of the promotion for the film, Stanton said he had to use every dollar of his reported $250 million budget. And, if he’s to be believed, it’s well worth it.

“I think once you see the film, you’ll realize how big of a budget it is, it’s all on that screen. It’s a fully realized world with tons of history, tons of cities and characters and cultural things, and fantastical ideas. And all of them are part of what makes it attractive in the books, in the 11 books, and there’s just nothing cheap about it,” Stanton said.

He added, “I just don’t think technology could even do what you want to have put on the screen for most of the time Hollywood’s been around, and it’s only recently that you could possibly fit the economics of it into a box.”

Are you looking forward to seeing “John Carter”? Are you a fan of the books like Stanton? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!

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‘John Carter’ Director Initially ‘Bristled’ At Title Change

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After decades in development limbo, the hero of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ novel, “John Carter of Mars,” will finally find his way onto the big screen with the guidance of director Andrew Stanton. But when he gets there, he’ll have dropped the “of Mars.”

After a rather controversial title change, the classic title “John Carter of Mars” became the shortened and genre-neutral “John Carter.”

For fans of the original Burroughs novels, this came as a move away from the beloved source materials, and Stanton admitted to MTV News’ Josh Horowitz that the change concerned him initially as well. “At first, I bristled, to be really honest. You can’t control people’s first impressions as much as you’d like,” he said. “There are just a lot of people that assume that it’s this weird astronaut/ space thing when you have ‘Mars’ in the title.”

The change took time to accept, but with it, Stanton found a new angle of the story to explore. “Even then, I wasn’t going to be swayed, but then I realized, ‘Wow, the movie’s really about a guy that becomes John Carter of Mars,’” Stanton said. “I don’t want to reveal any spoilers, but then I sort of thought, ‘All right, so now that actually makes sense. Maybe I can pull something that I haven’t seen people do in a movie before.’ ”

But what’s in a name? Stanton said that if he made a movie people can love, then not much. “My feeling is, if you like a movie, heck, you can call it ‘Dirt,’ and they’ll call it whatever for the rest of the time it exists,” Stanton said.

The title change was among Disney’s several marketing choices that took heat from fans. But Stanton said he understands the challenge of marketing one of his unorthodox films, like his last movie, “WALL-E.”

“Disney’s been changing hands, so it’s been a little bit of all hands on deck, but I feel we’re finally in good hands and we’re settling in,” Stanton said. “It’s not like anything else exactly. I’m used to giving Disney movies that they’re not used to selling, so I knew it would be a bumpy road, to be fair to them.”

What do you think of Disney’s decision to drop “of Mars” from the title? Leave your comment below!