Annie (2014 film)

2014 musical comedy film by Will GluckTemplate:SHORTDESC:2014 musical comedy film by Will Gluck

### **Screenplay by**

* Will Gluck
* Aline Brosh McKenna

### **Based on**

*Annie*
by Charles Strouse
Martin Charnin
Thomas Meehan
and
 *Little Orphan Annie*
by Harold Gray

### **Produced by**

* James Lassiter
* Will Gluck
* Jada Pinkett Smith
* Will Smith
* Caleeb Pinkett
* Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter
* Laurence "Jay" Brown
* Tyran "Ty Ty" Smith

### **Starring**

* Jamie Foxx
* Quvenzhane Wallis
* Rose Byrne
* Bobby Cannavale
* Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
* David Zayas
* Cameron Diaz

### **Music by**

* Greg Kurstin
* Sia

### **Production company**

* Columbia Pictures
* Village Roadshow Pictures
* Overbrook Entertainment
* Marcy Media Films
* Olive Bridge Entertainment

### **Release date**

* December 7, 2014 (2014-12-07) (Ziegfeld Theatre)
* December 19, 2014 (2014-12-19) (United States)

### **Box office**

$133.8 million

TBA

## Plot

In Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, Annie Bennett lives in foster care with several other girls under the care of Colleen Hannigan, a bitter former of C+C Music Factory who spends her days drinking, trying to snag a sweetheart, and giving various grueling chores to the orphans under her care. Annie spends Fridays waiting outside Domani's restaurant, believing her parents will come for her because a note written on a receipt from Domani's says they will return. When a city inspector checks on Miss Hannigan's treatment of the girls, Annie takes advantage of the situation; she manages to copy her social security number from his clipboard and heads off to get her information. Annie learns that there is no more information about her on her record than what she already knows.

While attempting to save a Shiba Inu from bullies, Annie is nearly run over but is saved by Will Stacks, a germaphobic cellphone mogul running for Mayor of New York City. Stacks' rescue of Annie goes viral on the Internet, boosting his popularity; per suggestion of Will's campaign manager Guy Danlily, Annie moves in with Will to boost his popularity further. Annie enjoys her new surroundings, befriending Will's assistant Grace Farrell. Annie also gets to adopt the stray dog from before, naming her Sandy. Bonding with Annie, Will reveals that he had humble beginnings in Queens; he never really knew his father due to his work hours, but believed he could understand him if he worked just as hard. Annie also helps Grace and Will realize that they like each other romantically.

Per Annie's request, Will takes her and her friends in Miss Hannigan's foster care to see the premiere of *MoonQuake Lake*. Stacks is uninterested in the movie at first, but soon becomes a major fan along with Grace. Per Annie and Grace's insistence, Stacks joins the premiere party. After returning her friends home, Annie shows Grace her Friday routine of waiting to see if her parents will return; Grace sympathizes, agreeing to keep this a secret from Will. At Miss Hannigan's, the girls accidentally wake her; Miss Hannigan snaps at them, saying rich people are selfish and will ditch anyone they do not like anymore; thus recalling her own past. Slightly hung over, she laments about her situation of foster kids and her desire to reclaim stardom.

Annie is invited to a charity event, where she speaks about how grateful she is for all the opportunities she's been presented. When Annie is asked to read a speech, she runs off and reveals that she does not know how to read (despite being 10 years old and attending school). Teaming up with Miss Hannigan, Guy plans to have impostors claim Annie as their daughter to boost Will's popularity to the point where he wins; Guy will then share his payment with Miss Hannigan. However, Guy doesn't care about Annie's well-being, planning to dump Annie back into the foster care system after the election and cutting Hannigan out of the deal.

By the time Miss Hannigan has a change of heart, Annie has already been kidnapped by the imposters. Miss Hannigan tells Will about Guy's role in the scheme, and Will fires him. Will, Grace, Miss Hannigan and the girls board Will's helicopter; aided by the police, they chase the getaway car into the park. The kidnappers believe that Will paid them to kidnap Annie rather than Guy, so Annie gets upset and chastises Will, thinking he set up the kidnapping and rescue. To prove his innocence, Will announces to the press his withdrawal from the mayoral race, after which Annie helps Grace and Will admit their love for each other. Annie learns that her parents are dead which explains why they never came back for her. Will cheers Annie up when he decides to adopt her, then all three dance and sing happily.

Annie announces the opening of the "Stacks Literacy Centre", to help children like herself, who cannot read. Everyone sings Annie's "Tomorrow"; humorously, Miss Hannigan attempts to continue singing after the song is done, only to receive stares that cue her to stop.

## Cast

* Quvenzhané Wallis as Annie Bennett Stacks, an optimistic 10 year old child living in a foster home searching for her parents. Unlike her prior appearances, Annie does not live in an orphanage but is kept in foster care.Cite error: Closing `</ref>` missing for `<ref>` tag
* David Zayas as Lou, the local bodega owner who is a friend of Annie and has a crush on Miss Hannigan. He sees some good in her and finds out she is not as mean as she thinks she is. He evokes the traits of the laundryman Mr. Bundles.
* Stephanie Kurtzuba as Mrs. Kovacevic, the New York Family Services worker who becomes close with Annie's case.
* Amanda Troya as Pepper Ulster, the bossiest and oldest foster girl. She says that she is about to turn thirteen and no one wants teenagers.
* Eden Duncan-Smith as Isabella Sullivan, the second oldest of Annie's foster sisters. She is based on Duffy.
* Zoe Margaret Colletti as Tessie Marcus, one of Annie's foster sisters, who is the second youngest and is in the same grade as her.
* Nicolette Pierini as Mia Putnam, the youngest of Annie's foster sisters. Mia is based on Molly.
* Marti as Sandy, Annie's dog. Sandy is a female in this film, as opposed to past adaptations where the dog is a male.

### Cameos

* Patricia Clarkson as Focus Group Woman
* Michael J. Fox as himself
* Mila Kunis as Andrea Alvin, the lead actress in *MoonQuake Lake*
* Ashton Kutcher as Simon Goodspeed, the lead actor in *MoonQuake Lake*
* Bobby Moynihan as Guy in Bar
* Rihanna as Moon Goddess, a supporting character in *MoonQuake Lake*
* Scarlett Benchley as Sakana, a supporting character in *MoonQuake Lake*
* Sia as Animal Care & Control Volunteer
* Rachel Crowther as a Street Dancer
* George Clooney as himself

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller's names appear in the end credits of *MoonQuake Lake*, a fictional film within the film; the scenes were actually directed by Lord and Miller. Taylor Richardson, who played the title role in the 2012 Broadway revival of the musical, appears in the beginning of the film as one of Annie's classmates, also named "Annie".

## Musical numbers

*Main article: Annie (2014 film soundtrack)*
While the film incorporates notable songs from the original Broadway production, written by composer Charles Strouse and lyricist Martin Charnin, the songs themselves were rearranged by Sia and Greg Kurstin to reflect its new contemporary setting. Executive music supervisor Matt Sullivan explained that there was a desire to make the film's use of music "seamless" rather than "abrupt", and to maintain the integrity and familiarity of the musical's most iconic songs, including "Tomorrow" and "It's the Hard Knock Life". The songs were rearranged with a percussive, pop-inspired style: in particular, "It's the Hard Knock Life" — whilst maintaining the use of "natural" sounds for its rhythm — was updated in a hip hop style. Lyrics to some songs were also updated to reflect the differences in the film's storyline and settings.Cite error: Closing `</ref>` missing for `<ref>` tag

1. "Maybe" – Annie, Mia, Isabella, Tessie and Pepper
2. "It's the Hard Knock Life" – Annie, Mia, Isabella, Tessie and Pepper
3. "Tomorrow" – Annie
4. "I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here" – Annie, Grace and Mrs. Kovacevic
5. "Little Girls" – Miss Hannigan
6. "The City's Yours" – Stacks and Annie
7. "Opportunity" – Annie
8. "Easy Street" – Guy and Miss Hannigan
9. "Who Am I?" – Miss Hannigan, Stacks, and Annie
10. "I Don't Need Anything But You" – Stacks, Annie and Grace
11. "Tomorrow (Finale)" – Cast (Annie, Stacks, Grace, Miss Hannigan, Lou, Nash, Mrs. Kovacevic, Pepper, Mia, Tessie, Isabella, etc.)
12. "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" (*end credits*) - Sia

## References

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1. ↑ [TBA *ANNIE* (PG)]. *British Board of Film Classification* (October 23, 2014).
2. ↑ Anthony D'Alessandro (December 20, 2014). [TBA 'Hobbit' Wakes Up Auds; 'Museum' Takes Second, 'Annie' Sings Third – Friday B.O. UPDATE].
3. ↑ Template:Cite journal
4. ↑ [TBA Annie (2014)]. *Box Office Mojo*. Internet Movie Database.
5. ↑ [TBA 'Dexter's' David Zayas Joins 'Annie' Remake (Exclusive)]. *The Hollywood Reporter* (September 30, 2013).
6. ↑ Goldberg, Haley (December 14, 2014). [TBA Meet the rescue dog playing Sandy in 'Annie']. *New York Post*.
7. ↑ Via RocNation. [TBA ANNIE Soundtrack Press Release]. Nuke The Fridge.

## External links

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* Template:IMDb
* Template:Mojo
* TBA
* TBA

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