8/30/22 Updated to include Scrooge release date.
As the days grow shorter, our list of must-see animation grows ever longer as Netflix has unveiled updates to its streaming & theatrical film release slate through the end of 2022. Of noted to toon watchers, dates for Henry Selick’s Wendell & Wild, Nora Twomey’s My Father’s Dragon, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio and Stephen Donnelly’s Dickensian revisit Scrooge: A Christmas Carol.
Wendell & Wild
On Netflix October 28 | In Select Theaters: October 21
From the delightfully wicked minds of Henry Selick and Jordan Peele comes Wendell & Wild, an animated tale about scheming demon brothers Wendell (Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (Peele), who enlist the aid of Kat Elliot (Lyric Ross) — a tough teen with a load of guilt — to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what Kat demands in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other, an animated fantasy that defies the law of life and death, all told through the handmade artistry of stop motion.
Directed by Selick, written by Selick and Peel, executive produced by Selick, Peele, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein and Win Rosenfeld, Wendell & Wild also features the voices of Angela Bassett, James Hong, Tamara Smart, Natalie Martinez, Tantoo Cardinal, Igal Naor, Gary Gatewood, Gabrielle Dennis, David Harewood, Maxine Peake, Ramona Young, Sam Zelaya, Seema Virdi and Ving Rhames.
On Netflix November | In Select Theaters: November
From five-time Academy Award-nominated animation studio Cartoon Saloon (The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, Wolfwalkers) and Academy Award-nominated director Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner), comes an exquisite film inspired by the Newbery-honored children’s book from author Ruth Stiles Gannett. Struggling to cope after a move to the city with his mother, Elmer runs away in search of Wild Island and a young dragon who waits to be rescued. Elmer’s adventures introduce him to ferocious beasts, a mysterious island and the friendship of a lifetime.
Directed by Twomey and written by Meg LeFauve, who both executive produce alongside Tomm Moore, Gerry Shirren, Ruth Coady and Alan Maloney, My Father’s Dragon voice stars Jacob Tremblay, Gaten Matarazzo, Golshifteh Farahani, Dianne Wiest, Rita Moreno, Chris O’Dowd, Judy Greer, Alan Cumming, Yara Shahidi, Jackie Earle Haley, Mary Kay Place, Leighton Meester, Spence Moore II, Adam Brody, Charlyne Yi, Maggie Lincoln, Jack Smith, Whoopi Goldberg and Ian McShane.
Scrooge: A Christmas Carol
On Netflix December 2 | In Select Theaters: November 18
Produced by Timeless Films in association with Axis Studios and directed by Stephen Donnelly, Charles Dickens’ ageless legend is reborn in this supernatural, time-traveling, musical adaptation of the definitive Christmas story. With his very soul on the line, Scrooge has but one Christmas Eve left to face his past and build a better future. Featuring re-imagined songs from the legendary and two-time Academy Award winner Leslie Bricusse OBE, Scrooge: A Christmas Carol is one for a new generation to sing.
Directed by Donnelly and produced by Bricusse, Ralph Kamp and Andrew Pearce, Scrooge features the voices of Luke Evans, Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn, Fra Fee, Giles Terera, Trevor Dion Nicholas, James Cosmo and Jonathan Pryce.
On Netflix December 9 In Select Theaters: To Be Announced
Academy Award-winning director Guillermo del Toro and award-winning stop-motion legend Mark Gustafson reimagine the classic Carlo Collodi tale of the fabled wooden boy with a whimsical tour de force that finds Pinocchio on an enchanted adventure that transcends worlds and reveals the life-giving power of love.
Del Toro helms the project as director with Gustafson, writer with Patrick McHale and producer with Lisa Henson, Gary Ungar, Alex Bulkley and Corey Campodonico. The voice cast features Gregory Mann, Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Tilda Swinton, Christoph Waltz, Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson and Burn Gorman.
These titles join 2022 Netflix animated features Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood, The Sea Beast, Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie and Bubblei.
