The Wild Robot

The Wild Robot is an upcoming American animated science fiction survival film based on the book series of the same name by Peter Brown, produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film was written and directed by Chris Sanders, produced by Jeff Hermann, and executive-produced by Sanders' longtime collaborative partner Dean DeBlois. It stars Lupita Nyong'o as Roz, the title character, alongside an ensemble voice cast including Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Bill Nighy, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, and Catherine O'Hara.

DreamWorks announced an animated film adaptation of the book series The Wild Robot in September 2023, with Sanders, Hermann, and DeBlois attached. Sanders took inspiration from Disney animated classic films and the works of Hayao Miyazaki. It would be the final film to be animated entirely in-house at DreamWorks, as it was reported in October 2023 that the studio would be shifting away from producing films in-house to relying more heavily on outside studios after 2024. Kris Bowers composed the film's score, marking his first score for an animated film.

The Wild Robot is scheduled to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024, and to be theatrically released in the United States on September 27, 2024.

Premise
"The epic adventure follows the journey of a robot—ROZZUM unit 7134, “Roz” for short — that is shipwrecked on an uninhabited island and must learn to adapt to the harsh surroundings, gradually building relationships with the animals on the island and becoming the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling."

Voice cast

 * Lupita Nyong'o as ROZZUM unit 7134 (“Roz”), an abandoned robot that lives in the forest who becomes the adoptive mother of Brightbill.
 * Pedro Pascal as Fink, a mischievous fox who is the first animal that Roz helps and befriends.
 * Kit Connor as Brightbill, an orphaned goose who is raised by Roz as her own son.
 * Catherine O'Hara as Pinktail, a mother opossum.
 * Bill Nighy as Longneck, a wise elder goose.
 * Stephanie Hsu as Vontra, a robot of Roz's race who has been sent to retrieve Roz.

Additionally, Mark Hamill, Matt Berry, and Ving Rhames have been cast in undisclosed roles.

Development
On September 28, 2023, DreamWorks Animation announced an animated film adaptation of the book series The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, with Chris Sanders set to write and direct, Jeff Hermann set to produce, and Sanders' longtime creative collaborator Dean DeBlois set to serve as executive producer. Other crew members were revealed, including production designer Raymond Zibach, editor Mary Blee, and head of story Heidi Jo Gilbert.

Casting
On March 5, 2024, with the release of the film's first trailer, Lupita Nyong'o, Pedro Pascal, Catherine O'Hara, Bill Nighy, Kit Connor, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, Matt Berry, and Ving Rhames were announced to be starring in the film.

Animation and design
At CinemaCon 2024 in April, Sanders said he took inspiration from Disney classic animated movies and the works of Hayao Miyazaki, resulting in a stylized CG visual style that he described as "a Monet painting in a Miyazaki forest".

The Wild Robot would be the final film to be animated entirely in-house at DreamWorks, as Cartoon Brew reported on October 6, 2023, that the studio would be shifting away from producing films in-house in their Glendale campus to relying more heavily on outside studios after 2024.

Music
Kris Bowers would compose the film's score, marking his first score for an animated film.

Marketing
The first trailer for the film, featuring a rendition of Reuben and the Dark's cover of "What a Wonderful World", and poster, were released on March 5, 2024. The trailer would debut in theaters three days later in front of screenings of DWA's Kung Fu Panda 4. Writing for Polygon, Tasha Robinson compared the design of Roz to familiar film robots such as BB-8, WALL-E, Baymax, and The Iron Giant, and notes that the only words spoken in the trailer - "Sometimes to survive, we must become more than we were programmed to be" - evoked the message of The Iron Giant (1999).

A second trailer and a new poster were released on June 11, 2024.

Release
The Wild Robot is stated to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024, and is scheduled to be released in theaters in the United States on September 27, 2024. It was previously scheduled for a week earlier, but was pushed back to avoid competition with Paramount Animation's Transformers One.

As part of Universal's deal with Netflix, the film will stream on Peacock for the first four months of the pay-TV window, before moving to Netflix for the next ten, and returning to Peacock for the remaining four.