You might not have kids, and you may not watch children’s animated movies, and that’s fair. But in case you’re unaware, Illumination Entertainment, the animation studio that Universal distributes, is a huge, profitable hit factory, producing blockbuster animation hits like the “Minions,” franchise, “Despicable Me,” “Sing” and “The Secret Life of Pets.” If they’re not for you, fair, but look at the numbers. Two of their films have crossed the $1 billion mark, two more have come extremely close to that mark, and most of their films routinely gross over $600 million worldwide. So Illumination is basically a huge money maker, and now they’ve introduced their latest would-be franchise, “Migration.”
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The studio announced the animated feature arriving this holiday season but didn’t deliver many details beyond a quick teaser that also serves as a kind of flex (or self-fellatio) of Illumination hits.
What we do know is “Migration” is directed by Benjamin Renner (“Ernest and Celestine”), with Anne Tenney as one of the voices, and it centers on a family of ducks trying to convince their overprotective father to go on the vacation of a lifetime. Also a plus, Mike White, writer and creator of HBO’s hit series, “The White Lotus,” is the writer of the film.
Here’s the official synopsis (which doesn’t tell you much).
This holiday season, Illumination, creators of the blockbuster Minions, Despicable Me, Sing, and The Secret Life of Pets comedies, invites you to take flight into the thrill of the unknown with a funny, feathered family vacation like no other in the action-packed new original comedy, Migration.
As is usually the case with these kinds of films, the bulk of the voice cast has not been announced—generally, these animation studios make these films way far in advance (they take forever), and then later in the process, court big-name celebrities and announce their participation later in the marketing cycle (aka, sometime within the next four months or so, likely around the time of the next trailer).
Regardless, Illumination invites you to soar into a new adventure this Christmas. Illumination’s “Migration” arrives only in theaters on December 22. Watch the new teaser below.