| Critters 2 | |
|---|---|
| Directed by |
Thor Freudenthal Aaron Springer |
| Produced by |
Audrey Wells David K. Lovegren David W. King Stephen Swofford |
| Screenplay by | David Reynolds |
| Story by |
Thor Freudenthal Aaron Springer Tom J. Astle |
| Starring |
James Corden Mindy Kaling Denzel Washington Idris Elba Jason Segel Kristoff St. John Zach Galifianakis M. Night Shyamalan Russi Taylor Clive Owen Tom Wilkinson Kelly Preston Olivia Newton-John |
| Music by |
Hans Zimmer John Powell |
| Cinematography | Cory Rocco Florimonte |
| Edited by | R. Orlando Duenas |
| Production companies |
Walt Disney Pictures Dice Productions |
| Distributed by |
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
| Release date |
August 23, 2019 (El Capitan Theatre) August 30, 2019 (United States) |
| Running time | 116 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $200 million |
| Box office | $1.430 billion |
Critters 2 is a 2019 American animated musical adventure comedy film produced by Dice Productions and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Aaron Springer and Thor Freudenthal, the film is the sequel to 2017's Critters, the second installment in the Critters film series, and Dice's first sequel outside of the Vanellope & Friends franchise. James Corden, Mindy Kaling, Jason Segel, Kristoff St. John, Zach Galifianakis, M. Night Shyamalan, and Russi Taylor reprise their roles from the first film, while new additions to the cast including Denzel Washington, Idris Elba, Clive Owen, Tom Wilkinson, Kelly Preston, and Olivia Newton-John voice the new characters introduced. In the film, Lemy, Batty, Burrows, and the critters discover Critter Woods is divided from other lands, each populated by a different population of wild animals, and are invited to a supposedly "peaceful" union by a scorpion, who, unbeknownst to them, secretly holds dark intentions.
Critters 2 premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on August 23, 2019, and was released theatrically in the United States on August 30, by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. This was one of the last Dice films Audrey Wells was involved and credited in, due to her death in October 2018, as well as the final film role for St. John, Taylor, Kristofferson, and Preston, as they all passed away before or after the film's release. It grossed $1.430 billion worldwide against its $200 million budget, becoming the highest-grossing Critters film and the fifth highest-grossing film of 2019. Critters 2 received generally positive reviews from critics. A sequel, Critters 3, were released on August 27, 2027.
Cast[]
- James Corden as Lemy, a ring-tailed lemur and the king of Critter Country.
- Mindy Kaling as Batty, a fruit bat and Lemy's friend.
- Jason Segel as Burrows, a meerkat and Lemy's other friend.
- Denzel Washington as Acornadillo, a troublemaking, intelligent, and charismatic con-artist armadillo who, unbeknownst to Lemy and his friends, is hired by Vladimir to invite the animals to be united. This was Denzel Washington's first-ever animated feature film role.
- Idris Elba as Vladimir Vito Virgil, a villainous scorpion who wants to take over the different animal lands.
- Kristoff St. John as Park, a confident-yet-grumpy great green parrot. This was the final film role for St. John, as he passed away a few months before the film's release, and is thus dedicated to his memory.
- Zach Galifianakis as Bext, a nervous beaver.
- M. Night Shyamalan as Hissy, a stretchy, long, flexible blue snake.
- Russi Taylor as Chipper, a chipmunk who is good friends with Batty. This was Taylor's final appearance in a theatrical film before her death in July of that same year, and thus is dedicated to her memory.
- Clive Owen as King Wyatt, an African lion and the ruler of the Savanna. This was Kristofferson's last feature film role before his death in 2024.
- Tom Wilkinson as King Theodore, a Bengal tiger and the ruler of the Rainforest and Tropics.
- Olivia Newton-John as Queen Nevaeh, a red kangaroo and the ruler of the Outback. This was Newton-John's only animated feature before her death in 2022.
- Kelly Preston as Queen TunDriti, a polar bear and the ruler of the Polar Regions. This was Preston's final film role in her lifetime before her death in 2020.
- Gary Anthony Williams as Edward, an elephant.
- Peter Tuiasosopo as Gary, a giraffe.
- Fergie as Ziti, a zebra,
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph as Hae, a hippopotamus.
- Michael K. Williams as Reign, a rhinoceros.
- Jolie Jenkins as Jjik, a jaguar.
- Tara Reid as Feather, a flamingo.
- Tom Lister Jr. as Gregory, a gorilla.
- Dominic Monaghan as Pip, a panda.
- Jack McBrayer as Manuel, a monkey.
- Christopher Sabat as Sabat, a sloth.
- Xavier Samuel as Kenneth, a koala.
- Eric Bana as Dan, a dingo.
- Abbie Cornish as Way, a wombat.
- Jason Mantzoukas as Pi, an emperor penguin.
- Ali Wong as Saphine, a seal.
- Charles Shaughnessey as Walt, a walrus.
- Lily Singh as A. F., an arctic fox.
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Puff, a puffin.
- Philip Baker Hall as Kuku, an elderly Emperor tamarin and the former king of Critter Country.
- Freddy Rodriguez as Chatz, Vladmir's assistant.
Box office[]
In the United States, Critters 2 was released alongside Snatched and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, and was projected to gross $120 million in its opening weekend. It grossed $540 million in its opening weekend, and grossed $690 million in the United States and Canada and $740 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $1.430 billion worldwide. Produced on a $200 million budget, it was a box-office success, surpassing its predecessor.
Critical response[]
Critter Country 2 received generally positive reviews, with a 87% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 133 reviews. The consensus reads, "Critter Country 2, even if slightly less fresh than the original, retains the charm its predecessor had, boasting an amazing ensemble voice cast, colorful characters, and impressive animation". Metacritic calculated a score of 79 out of 100 based on 41 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.
Critics found it to be heartwarming. Caroline Westbrook of Empire praised the performance of M. Night Shyamalan as DJ Can the Pink Zebra, saying, "Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan has a nice time of his life". Peter Rainer of The Christian Science Monitor wrote, "Like the first Critter Country, the second one wears the hearts of the kiddos loved the first film, meaning they will love the sequel". Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun Times gave the film "Two Thumbs Up". A.O. Scott of The New York Times gave the film a positive review, saying, "More than good enough to live up to the original, Critter Country 2 is one of history's acceptable sequels".