In an attempt to recover from months of seeing greenlit projects go dark and in-production films grind to a halt, studios have partially turned to streaming services for revenue. Disney in particular has become increasingly liberal with this marketing play, with Kenneth Branagh‘s “Artemis Fowl” being the most recent film to feed the trend. Now, Disney’s “The One and Only Ivan,” is forgoing a big-screen debut in favor of adding itself to the Disney+ exclusives library.
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Here’s the official synopsis:
Ivan is a 400-pound silverback gorilla who shares a communal habitat in a suburban shopping mall with Stella the elephant and Bob the dog. He has few memories of the jungle where he was captured, but when a baby elephant named Ruby arrives, it touches something deep within him. Ruby is recently separated from her family in the wild, which causes him to question his life, where he comes from and where he ultimately wants to be.
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The adaptation of Katherine Applegate‘s bestseller joins a growing number of multiplex-ready films repackaged and repositioned as streaming exclusives. Paramount did it with “Trolls: World Tour” in April and enjoyed a success that reinforces what studios have been mulling over since March. The film stars: Sam Rockwell as the voice of Ivan; Angelina Jolie as the voice of Stella; Danny DeVito as the voice of Bob the dog; Helen Mirren as the voice of Snickers the poodle; Brooklynn Prince as the voice of Ruby; Ramon Rodriquez as the mall employee George; Ariana Greenblatt as George’s daughter Julia; Chaka Khan as the voice of Henrietta the chicken; Mike White as the voice of Frankie the seal; Ron Funches as the voice of Murphy the rabbit; Phillipa Soo as the voice of Thelma the parrot; and Bryan Cranston as Mack, the mall’s owner.
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As its trailer makes clear, the film will mesh CGI and live-action and (hopefully) use that to its advantage. We’ll see! Film and theatre director Thea Sharrock helms the film while “School of Rock” scribe Mike White also serves as the screenwriter and Jolie produces.
“The One and Only Ivan” streams exclusively on Disney+ starting August 21, 2020.