Craig Before the Creek

Theatrical release poster

***Craig Before the Creek*** (also known by its promotional title ***Craig Before the Creek: The Movie***) is a 2023 American animated adventure film based on the Cartoon Network television series *Craig of the Creek*. The film was produced by Cartoon Network Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is directed by series creators Matt Burnett and Ben Levin (in their directorial debuts), co-directed by Naija Porter, and co-written by Burnett and Levin, with additional contributions from Porter and various writers. It stars the voices of series regulars Philip Solomon, Noël Wells, H. Michael Croner, Kimberly Hébert Gregory, Phil LaMarr, and Lucia Cunningham, with Vico Ortiz as Serena and Byron Marc Newsome reprising his role as Duane Williams from the spin-off series *Jessica's Big Little World*. The film serves as a prequel to the series and the pilot of *Craig of the Creek*.

In his desire to go back to his old home after recently moving into town with his family, Craig sets out on a journey to find the Wishmaker, a paper fortune teller that can grant any kid's wish hidden away in the nearby creek. He forms new friends with Kelsey and J.P., and the three are pursued by a fearsome band of pirates led by their captain, Serena, who seeks to use the Wishmaker to destroy the Creek itself.

While wrapping up production of the series' third season, in 2020, Cartoon Network approached Burnett and Levin for a new *Craig of the Creek* film. The film began work at Cartoon Network Studios; much of the film's dialogue was recorded remotely. It is the second Cartoon Network film to feature a Black lead character after *Class of 3000* (2005).

*Craig Before the Creek* was heavily promoted in marketing campaigns by Warner Bros. and Cartoon Network and was heavily anticipated by fans of the series. The film had its red carpet premiere at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood on November 19, 2023. It was theatrically released in the United States on November 24, 2023. It was also made available on HBO Max 45 days after its theatrical release. The film received positive reviews from critics, and became a box office success, grossing over $175 million worldwide against a budget of $22 million. It was praised for its stylized animation quality, themes, characterization, soundtrack, and humor, but criticized for its writing and pacing. *Craig Before the Creek* made its debut on Cartoon Network on August 16, 2024. It was the first prequel film made by Cartoon Network Studios to be based on a television series since 2002’s *The Powerpuff Girls Movie*.

## Premise

Before he was Craig of the Creek, he was just Craig — a new kid in a new town. All Craig wants is to go back to his old friends at his old home. But when he learns that the nearby creek is hiding a lost treasure that could make his wish come true, Craig sets off on a journey to find it — navigating the perilous suburban wilderness, forging new friendships, all while being pursued by a fearsome band of pirates who are bent on destroying the Creek itself.

## Voice cast

* Philip Solomon as Craig / Warpspeed
* Noël Wells as Kelsey / Bug Battler / Mortimer / Serena's Friend
* H. Michael Croner as J.P. / Kraken Kid / Bryan / Todd / Flag Kid / Serena's Friend
* Vico Ortiz as Serena
* Kimberly Hébert Gregory as Nicole
* Byron Marc Newsome as Duane
* Lucia Cunningham as Jessica
* Phil LaMarr as Bernard / Teach / Waterballoon Mike
* Jeff Trammell as James / Gibson / Cannonball
* Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Hannah Le
* Zehra Fazal as Gala / Shannon the Scout / Tattoo
* Ben Levin as Bobby / Man On Bike / Tony / Jameolas
* Matt Burnett as Frog Master / Pokey / Roger / Monkey Kid
* Jessica Mckenna as Handlebarb
* Gunnar Sizemore as Jason / Kah / Boom
* Andree Vermeulen as Eliza / Andy
* Dana Davis as Kit
* Naija Porter as Kristenandra / Nessie / Cammy
* Analesa Fisher as The Timekeeper
* Terrence Hardy Jr. as Harry / Norman / Ankles
* Ashleigh Hairston as Renee / Wren
* Karen Fukuhara as Alexis

## Production

### Development

While production of the series’ third season was wrapping up, Cartoon Network approached *Craig of the Creek* creators Matt Burnett and Ben Levin, and asked them to develop a new *Craig of the Creek* film for theaters. Although initially unsure about making a film, as they "thought [they] had done enough for these characters", the two eventually agreed to develop the film upon realizing they "see this as a good opportunity to bring the show to the big screen", to which they "started thinking about a fun premise that would appeal to everyone, even those who weren't familiar with the show".

On June 4, 2020, it was announced that a new film titled *Craig Before the Creek: The Movie* would be executive produced by Burnett and Levin, Brian A. Miller and Sam Register, and be released in theaters. The film is produced by Cartoon Network Studios, marking their fourth non-television film after *The Powerpuff Girls Movie* (2002), *Ben 10: The Movie* (2020) and *Adventure Time: The Kingdom of Ooo* (2023). The film also marks Cartoon Network's third non-television film to use 2D animation after *Steven Universe: The Movie* (2019) and *Clarence's Big Break* (2021). Production was done via telecommuting during the COVID-19 pandemic. On September 29, 2021, it was revealed that Burnett and Levin would direct the film. The film officially wrapped production on June 8, 2023.

### Casting and recording

After the film's announcement, it was confirmed that Phillip Solomon, Noël Wells, H. Michael Croner, Phil LaMarr, Lucia Cunningham, and Kimberly Hébert Gregory would reprise their roles from the series, and that Byron Marc Newsome was confirmed to voice Duane Williams, reprising his role as the character from *Jessica's Big Little World*. On July 7, 2022, it was announced that Vico Ortiz joined the cast in a role created for the film.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many cast members had to record their lines from their homes. On October 16, 2022, Solomon revealed that he had finished recording his lines. After recording their lines, voice actors sent their dialogue to the film's editors.

### Animation

The film's animation was produced by an animation studio in Seoul, South Korea: Rough Draft Korea. Due to Cartoon Network Studios closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Connor Flynn did additional animation fixing personally from his home. On November 18, 2022, Burnett and Levin said that the film's production wasn't hindered by the temporary closure, since animators "always spend a lot of time drawing at home. So most of them have a pretty full setup and most of them already have the technology to be able to link up". However, on January 16, 2023, they did say that they had to "keep moving things around", having to transfer in-between animation work between several overseas studios due to each studio being closed in response to the pandemic while still working on animation for the film.

## Music

*Main article: Craig Before the Creek (soundtrack)*
On June 14, 2022, Jeff Rosenstock, who composed the music for the television series, was confirmed to be composing the film's score, with Atticus Ross composing the additional music for the score. The soundtrack album was released on November 24, 2023, the same day as the film's theatrical release. Additionally, three original songs were announced to be made for the film: "Stuck with the Past", "A Wish", and "Find My Way", performed by Jonas Blue, Billy Gilman, and Demi Lovato and released as singles on November 3, 10, and 17, respectively.

## Release

### Theatrical and streaming

The film premiered on November 19, 2023 at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 24, 2023, by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film was also available to stream on HBO Max in the United States 45 days after it released in theaters.

### Marketing

The marketing campaign from Warner Bros. and Cartoon Network for *Craig Before the Creek* began on March 24, 2023, when a T-shirt with the film's logo became available on the studio's shop websites. In April, it was announced that Mattel had expanded their deal with Warner Bros. and Cartoon Network to make merchandise for the film. On September 14, McDonald's launched its limited time campaign in the participating restaurants by including twelve toys free with the purchase of a Happy Meal.

### Home media

*Craig Before the Creek* was released on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K UHD on February 6, 2024 by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

### Television broadcasts

*Craig Before the Creek* aired on Cartoon Network on August 16, 2024. Following its debut, *Craig Before the Creek* encored on the following Saturday (Aug. 17) and Sunday (Aug. 18).

## Reception

### Box office

The film started its opening weekend at $20 million; making back its budget, then grossed $51.3 million during December, followed by $82 million the next in January. On its final month in theaters, it had grossed $175 million.

### Critical reception

Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 78% based on the 104 reviews and an average rating of 6.5/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "*Craig Before the Creek* rides the beginning of the series to grand effect, and the final result is an emotionally effective, visually stunning, and wholly witty adaptation that will satisfy both children and adults." On Metacritic, it receives a score of 66 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gives the film an average grade of "B+" on its A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported 80% of filmgoers gave it a positive score, with 67% saying they would definitely recommend it.

Jon Mendelsohn of *Comic Book Resources* gave the film a 5 out of 10 rating and commended the animation and voice performances, but criticized the story and pacing. They concluded, "*Craig Before the Creek* is light and easy to digest, but anyone expecting a grand follow-up to the beloved Cartoon Network series may be disappointed. This film will delight those who miss the series, but it's mostly for die-hard fans. While the animation style and voice-acting are excellent, the writing falls flat in the second act. However, the film is enjoyable enough to satisfy those who the show has already won over."

## Gallery

*Main article: Craig Before the Creek/Gallery*
## Trivia

* This is the first ever feature film of the series.
* This is the first animated *Craig of the Creek* movie to hit theaters.
	+ This is also the first ever *Craig of the Creek* movie in general to hit theaters.
* This is Cartoon Network's eleventh original movie to be released theatrically, after *The Powerpuff Girls Movie*, which was released in 2002, *Regular Show: The Movie*, which was released in 2015, *Teen Titans Go! To the Movies*, which was released in 2018, *Clarence's Big Break* and *A Foster's Movie: Imagination Desolation*, which were both released in 2021, *Billy & Mandy The Movie: The Quest of the Diamonds* and *The Amazing World of Gumball: The Movie*, which were both released in 2022, and *OK K.O.! Let's Save the Universe* and *Adventure Time: The Kingdom of Ooo*, which were both released in this year.
* Cartoon Network's sixth film to not be accompanied by a short film. This does not include *Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi 2* (2006) which was accompanied by *The Karate Guard* (2005).
* This is the first animated prequel to the television series.
* The movie is a prequel to the show it's based on, since it stars a younger Craig.

## Transcripts

### Main

To see the main transcript of the film, click here.

### Trailers

To see the transcript for the trailers of the film, click here.

## Credits

*Main article: Craig Before the Creek: The Movie/Credits*