Elliott Manor

Elliott Manor is a 2029 black horror comedy science-fiction animated film based on the Murder Drones web series by Liam Vickers. It is the second Murder Drones film to be created by DreamWorks Animation, acting as a prequel to the 2026 film Murder Drones. It was directed by Alfonso Cuarón, based on the story written by Liam Vickers, alongside Glitch Productions co-founders Luke & Kevin Lerdwichagul, and was co-written by Avatar: The Last Airbender creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. The film sees Ryan Reynolds, Katherine Waterston, Zazie Beetz, Steph Crothers, and Brianna Mazzola reprise their roles as N, V, J, Tessa, and Cyn. New additions to the voice cast include David Tennant, Mae Whitman, Wendie Malick, and David Thewlis, the latter of whom replaces Andrew Rannells as the voice of James Elliott.
After the outstanding commercial success of Murder Drones, the idea of a prequel film was pitched by Liam Vickers. The film was confirmed at the fourth GlitchX event in November 2026, and production of the prequel film began that December. The first trailer was released on Christmas Eve 2028, to massive praise from fans. 
Elliott Manor premiered in Sydney, Australia on August 25th 2029 at the Sydney Opera House, and theatrically released on September 22nd before making its United States debut on September 28th. Alike the initial film, Elliott Manor was a critical and commercial success, with praise going towards Reynolds' performance and the heightened involvement of Beetz, alongside the score, animation quality, and Cuarón's use of his signature style of directing. It grossed $752.8 million worldwide at the box office on a $175 million budget, making it the fifth highest-grossing film of 2029, the fourth highest-grossing film in DreamWorks history and the 26th highest-grossing animated film of all time.
== Voice cast ==
* Ryan Reynolds as N, a Worker Drone butler at the manor who is friends with Tessa and is the "big brother" of Cyn
* Katherine Waterston as V, a Worker Drone maid who is friends with Tessa and the love interest of N
* Zazie Beetz as J, a Worker Drone maid who is especially close with Tessa, though resentful towards Cyn and somewhat of a bully to N
* Steph Crothers as Tessa Elliott, the daughter of James and Louisa Elliott who took the Drones into the manor and befriended them
* Brianna Mazzola as Cyn, the "little sister" of N who was resuscitated by the AbsoluteSolver
* David Thewlis as James Elliott, Tessa's strict and neglectful father, the owner of Elliott Manor, and the husband of Louisa Elliott. Thewlis replaces Andrew Rannells due to scheduling conflicts.
* Lauren Vélez as Louisa Elliott, Tessa's incredibly abusive mother and the wife of James Elliott. Vélez replaces Rhea Ripley due to scheduling conflicts.
* David Tennant as Lord Frumptlebucket, a friend of James Elliott who assists Tessa in navigating her way around life
* Wendie Malick as Katie Frumptlebucket, the wife of Lord Frumptlebucket
* Mae Whitman as Emma Ridley, an aspiring scientist who later becomes the head scientist of Cabin Fever Labs
* Sacha Dhawan as Mitchell, Emma's best friend who also intends to become a scientist
* Michael Kovach as Tony, the only human servant at Elliott Manor. Kovach provided the voice for N in the original web series.
Additionally, Miranda Cosgrove and Sam Rockwell reprise their roles as Uzi Doorman and Khan Doorman from the main film. Peter Capaldi voices Douglas, a Scottish shareholder who was school friends with James. Although Brianna Mazzola provided the voice of the AbsoluteSolver in the main film, the voice of the AbsoluteSolver in Elliott Manor is provided by Allanah Fitzgerald, Cyn's original voice from the web series. Iain Armitage, Millie Gibson, Dana Gaier, Kira Buckland, Asher Blinkoff and Calah Lane play a group of school students who bully Tessa for her obsession with Drones and the fact she has abusive parents. Paterson Joseph portrays an unnamed British aristocrat, while Kikunosuke Toya and Daisuke Ono play a duo of unnamed Japanese government officials. Daniel Radcliffe portrays a boy named Lannan, who is Tessa's only true human friend.
== Development ==
Upon its announcement at GlitchX 2026, development of Elliott Manor began in December 2026, with Liam Vickers penning early drafts for the script. Russell T Davies was initially slated to return as a co-writer, though he did not return due to his commitments on the revival series of Torchwood. Glitch Productions announced in January 2027 that Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, the creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender, would be joining the film as co-writers. No clue on a release date was given until late 2027, when it was slated for release in the second half of 2029. Production began in May 2027, with Ryan Reynolds starting his voice recordings after finishing his commitments on Deadpool 4.
At GlitchX 2027, it was announced that Reynolds, alongside Katherine Waterston, Zazie Beetz, Steph Crothers and Brianna Mazzola would be reprising their roles as N, V, J, Tessa, and Cyn. Alfonso Cuarón was confirmed to be directing the film. In a statement on December 18th, 2027, Glitch Productions confirmed that Andrew Rannells and Rhea Ripley would not be reprising their roles as James and Louisa Elliott due to scheduling issues, as Rannells was busy with Broadway projects and Ripley's schedule with the WWE would cause problems with deadlines. A few days later on December 21st, it was confirmed that James and Louisa Elliott would be portrayed by David Thewlis and Lauren Vélez respectively. In February 2028, it was confirmed that David Tennant, Wendie Malick, Mae Whitman and Sacha Dhawan would be joining the voice cast in undisclosed roles.
== Reception ==
=== Box office ===
Elliott Manor grossed $446.3 million in the United States and Canada, and $306.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide gross of $752.8 million.
In the United States and Canada, Elliott Manor was projected to gross $105-130 million in its five-day opening weekend. The film grossed around $138 million in those five days, topping the box office for three weeks running.
Internationally the film opened in different countries with different dates, with Australia being the earliest country to release it. In a majority of the countries it opened in, it topped the box office, though in New Zealand, Ireland and Argentina, it opened third, and in China it opened fourth.
=== Critical response ===
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 91% of 319 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.8/10. The website's consensus reads: "Equally as exciting as the original film, Elliott Manor allows the audience to be captivated by magic of the mansion." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 84 out of 100, based on 65 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while those polled at PostTrak gave it an 89% overall positive score, with 81% saying they would "definitely recommend" it.