Actor Ryan Reynolds (“The Adam Project”) is about to return to the “Deadpool” franchise soon with a shoot in the United Kingdom, this time under the banner of Marvel Studios. But the actor also lining up another project with Legendary. That studio was behind the hit video game film “Detective Pikachu,” which is getting a sequel in the future, and the two are looking to reunite as Reynolds has become attached to a new R-rated comedy, “Animals Friends.”
According to the Deadline report, “Animal Friends” will be a live-action/animation hybrid film with Reynolds, Aubrey Plaza (“The White Lotus”), Jason Momoa (“Fast X”), and Vince Vaughn (“Freaky”) taking roles in the project. Peter Atencio is set to direct the road-trip comedy tailored for a mature audience. The script comes from the screenwriter duo Kevin Burrows and Matt Mider, as the project will combine live-action and animated characters. We’re still waiting on more plot details and what those animated characters will look like, but the title might be a big clue.
Atencio’s television and film credits consist of “Key & Peele,” “The Last Man On Earth,” “Jean-Claude Van Johnson,” “Keanu,” and the upcoming studio comedy “The Machine.” It’s also noteworthy that visual effects company DNEG (“Sonic The Hedgehog 2”) is handling the VFX and animation in the film.
This concept seemingly harkens back to their previous effort, “Detective Pikachu,” as that pic that featured Reynolds as Pikachu also had a similar mix of live-action/CGI animated elements but was aimed at a younger audience, given the fandom of the Nintendo property. That aforementioned “Pokemon” sequel has Jonathan Krisel in talks to direct, who was the co-creator of comedic shows such as “Portlandia” and “Baskets.” It’ll be curious to see if Legendary continues their working relationship with Reynolds, as voice acting does allow him to make more things, as his live-action schedule might be tougher to crack.