Zootopia (Illumination Version)

Zootopia is a 2021 American animated romantic action comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination, and distributed by Universal. The film was directed by Benjamin Renner, co-directed by Guylo Homsy, and produced by Chris Meledandri, from a screenplay written by Tom J. Astle, Matt Ember, Mike White and a story by Astle, Ember, White and Renner. It stars the voices of Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Kumail Nanjiani, Elizabeth Banks, Joe Manganiello, Hannah Waddingham, Awkwafina, Keegan-Michael Key, Jemaine Clement, Bonnie Hunt, John Krasinski, David Mitchell, Yara Shahidi, Danny DeVito and Shakira. Taking place in the titular city where anthropomorphic mammals coexist, it tells a story of an unlikely partnership between a
Illumination announced Zootopia in February 2017, with Renner, Homsy, White, Astle, and Ember attached as director, co-director, and writer, respectively. Renner, who had previously helmed traditionally animated films, including Ernest & Celestine (2012) and The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales... (2017), was tasked with adapting his simple drawing style for a computer-animated film, while the film drawn the story is inspired by romantic action films like Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), Moonstruck (1987), Amélie (2001), Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005) and Date Night (2010). In hiring Renner, studio head and producer Meledandri sought to focus on a filmmaker's vision for the project in comparison with Illumination's recent films. John Powell composed the score, marking his second collaboration with Illumination following The Lorax (2012).
Zootopia made its world premiere at the AFI Fest on November 14, 2021, and was theatrically released in the United States on December 22, 2021. The film received positive reviews from critics, who praised its screenplay, animation, voice acting, emotional weight, and subject matter. The film opened to record-breaking box offices in several countries, and earned a worldwide gross of over $1 billion, making it the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2021. Among other accolades, the film was named one of the top ten best films of 2021 by the American Film Institute, and it was nominated for several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film. A sequel, Zootopia 2, is scheduled for release on March 21, 2025.
== Cast ==
* Anna Kendrick as Linda Barker
* Justin Timberlake as Sam Ripple
== Production ==
=== Development ===
In February 2017, Illumination announced a new film titled Zootopia, with French animator and comic book creator Benjamin Renner set to direct with Guylo Homsy as co-director and Mike White set to pen the script. In April 2018, more film crew such as editor Christian Gazal and production designer and character designer by longtime Illumination artist Eric Guillon were revealed. Renner previously directed the traditionally animated films Ernest & Celestine (2012), The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales... (2017) and co-direct in Sony Pictures Animation's Migration (2017), and was already a household name among the staff of Illumination Mac Guff prior to his involvement with the company. Illumination head and film producer Chris Meledandri hired Renner to direct the studio's first original project since 2016 for his filmmaking sensibility, stating during his visit to the Annecy International Animation Film Festival that there is a "filmmaker attention" for Zootopia in comparison with Illumination's recent releases up to The Angry Birds Movie (2016). It was around this time that screenwriter Tom J. Astle and Matt Ember was hired to work on the film. Work on the film shifted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was done remotely following the temporary closure of Illumination Mac Guff (now renamed as Illumination Studios Paris). Meledandri and Janet Healy produced the film.
=== Writing ===
Meledandri pitched of which three involved animal characters: an all-animal adaptation of The Three Musketeers, a 1960s-themed story about a "mad doctor cat...who turned children into animals", and a "bounty hunter pug in space". The common thread running through these ideas was that Renner wanted to do a film similar to Disney's Robin Hood, which also featured animals in anthropomorphic roles. According to the film The Smurfs (2016), Zootopia emerged from his desire to create something different from other animal anthropomorphic films, where animals either live in the natural world or in the human world. His concept, in which animals live in a modern world designed by animals for animals, was well received by Meledandri, who responded by embracing and lifting Renner "in the air like a baby Simba". Meledandri suggested that Renner should try combining the 1960s theme with the animal characters, especially the space pug. This led Howard to develop and pitch Savage Seas, an international spy film centered on an arctic hare named "Jack Savage" who was somewhat like James Bond. Renner cited romantic films like Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), Moonstruck (1987), You've Got Mail (1998), Amélie (2001), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), and The Big Sick (2017) as particular influences when he enjoyed leaning into the rom-com as a storytelling genre. 
=== Animation and design ===
The set designers at the studio looked to cities like New York City, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Paris, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Venice and Amsterdam for inspiration. Research for the film took place in Kenya and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, where animators spent eight months studying various animals' walk cycles as well as fur color. Eight hundred thousand forms of mammals were created for and featured in the film. To make the characters' fur even more realistic, they also went to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County to closely observe the appearance of fur with a microscope under a variety of lighting.