Charlotte's Web 2 (2009 film)

***Charlotte's Web 2***, released in some countries as ***Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Grand Adventure***, is a 2009 American adventure fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Gary Winick and produced by Jordan Kerner. A direct sequel to *Charlotte's Web* (2006), it is a remake of the 2003 animated film *Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Grand Adventure*, and reprises the performances of Dakota Fanning, Kevin Anderson, Beau Bridges and Gary Basaraba, with voices provided by Dominic Scott Kay, Robert Redford, Briana Hodge, Maia Kirkpatrick, Jennessa Rose, Steve Buscemi, and Christopher Plummer. It is the second installment to the live-action/CGI *Charlotte's Web* franchise.

The film centers around Wilbur, who lives on Homer Zuckerman's farm and is taking care of Nellie, Aranea and Joy (Charlotte's three daughters). He also must save his new friend, a friendly black lamb named Cardigan, from being eaten by an evil fox named Farley. Development on a sequel to *Charlotte's Web* began in 2007, with filming taking place in Greendale, Victoria and the suburbs in Melbourne, Australia. The rights to the film were jointly shared with Sony Pictures as revealed in a May 2007 interview with producer Jordan Kerner. The visual effects and CGI animation were provided by Rhythm and Hues Studios, Rising Sun Pictures, Fuel International, Proof, Tippett Studio and Digital Pictures Iloura. Danny Elfman originally returned to compose the score, but was replaced by Michael Giacchino.

Produced by Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, Walden Media, Jordan Kerner's The K Entertainment Company and Nickelodeon Movies, *Charlotte's Web 2* premiered in Melbourne on December 4, 2009 and was theatrically released in the United States on December 25, 2009 by Paramount Pictures and internationally on December 27, 2009 by Columbia Pictures through Sony Pictures Releasing's international division. It received positive reviews, though some deemed it inferior to its predecessor. Grossing $268 million worldwide on its budget of $110 million, the film was a box office success.

## Cast

* Dakota Fanning as Fern Arable
* Kevin Anderson as John Arable
* Beau Bridges as Dr. Dorian
* Louis Corbette as Avery Arable
* Essie Davis as Phyllis Arable
* Gary Basaraba as Farmer Homer L. Zuckerman
* Siobhan Fallon Hogan as Edith Zuckerman
* Julian O'Donnell as Henry Fussy

### Voices

* Julia Roberts as Charlotte A. Cavatica the Barn Spider
* Dominic Scott Kay as Wilbur the Spring Pig
* Tara Strong as Cardigan the Lamb
* Steve Buscemi as Templeton the Rat
* Briana Hodge as Nellie, one of Charlotte's daughters
* Maia Kirkpatrick as Joy, one of Charlotte's daughters
* Jennessa Rose as Aranea, one of Charlotte's daughters
* Christopher Plummer as Farley the Fox
* John Cleese as Samuel the Sheep
* Oprah Winfrey as Gussy the Goose
* Cedric the Entertainer as Golly the Gander
* Kathy Bates as Bitsy the Cow
* Reba McEntire as Betsy the Cow
* Robert Redford as Ike the Horse
* Thomas Haden Church as Brooks the Crow
* André Benjamin as Elwyn the Crow
* Abraham Benrubi as Uncle the Pig
* Sam Shepard as The Narrator

## Production

Production on a sequel to *Charlotte's Web* began in 2007, with Gary Winick returning to direct. Jordan Kerner of The K Entertainment Company was announced to return to produce the film alongside Albie Hecht and Julia Pistor. Dakota Fanning returned to reprise her performance as Fern Arable, along with Kevin Anderson, Beau Bridges, Louis Corbette, Essie Davis, Gary Basaraba, Siobhan Fallon Hogan and Julian O'Donnell. Dominic Scott Kay returned to voice as Wilbur the Spring Big, alongside Steve Buscemi, Briana Hodge, Maia Kirkpatrick and Jennessa Rose. Canadian actor Christopher Plummer was cast as Farley the Fox.

In 2008, Sony Pictures acquired the rights to the *Charlotte's Web* film series. Paramount Pictures handled the distribution rights in the United States and Canada, whereas Columbia Pictures handled the distribution rights internationally. Filming took place in Greendale, Victoria and the suburbs in Melbourne, Australia. The school scenes were filmed at Spotswood Primary School in Melbourne. Additional filming took place in Sydney, New South Wales. The animation and visual effects were handled by Rhythm and Hues Studios, Rising Sun Pictures, Fuel International, Proof, Tippett Studio and Digital Pictures Iloura. Post-production sound work was handled at Skywalker Sound in Marin County, California.

## Soundtrack

***Charlotte's Web 2: Music from the Motion Picture*** is the licensed soundtrack album for the film. The score was originally going to be composed by Danny Elfman, who composed the score for the first film. He was subsequently replaced by American composer Michael Giacchino. The score album was released through Sony Classical on December 31, 2009.

## Release

### Theatrical

*Charlotte's Web 2* premiered in the Australian city of Melbourne, Victoria on December 4, 2009, before being released theatrically on December 25, 2009 in the United States by Paramount Pictures. It was later released internationally two days later on December 27, 2009 by Sony Pictures Releasing International. The film was rated G for General Audiences by the Motion Picture Association of America.

## Home media

> *Main article: Charlotte's Web 2 (2009 film)/Home media*
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*Charlotte's Web 2* was released on DVD and Blu-ray on March 12, 2010 by Paramount Home Entertainment and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. It was later released on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray on December 26, 2019 to coincide with the film's 10th anniversary. In 2021, the film was re-released on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray on December 12, 2021 to coincide with the 2006 film's 15th anniversary, which included both the 2006 film and the 2009 film. The special features are shown below:

* Dolby TrueHD 7.1
* Dolby Digital 5.1 English
* Dolby Digital 5.1 French
* Dolby Digital 5.1 Spanish
* Dolby Digital 5.1 Portuguese
* *The Strings of the Web: How Charlotte's Web 2 Was Made* featurette
* *The Melody of Wilbur and Charlotte: The Music of Charlotte's Web 2* featurette with Michael Giacchino
* *The Stringy Mind of E. B. White: Adapting Charlotte's Web for Film* featurette with director Gary Winick
* *Believe in Movie Magic* with producer Jordan Kerner

## Reception

### Critical response

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports an approval rating of 73% based on reviews from 198 critics, with an average rating of 6.40/10. The site's critical consensus states, "While it may not be as great as its preceding film, *Charlotte's Web 2* is still a great and well-deserved sequel to a beloved movie based on E. B. White's illustrations and doesn't hash out on its lowest-common denominator kiddie fare unlike some other films in the live-action animation film style." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three stars out of four, writing: "*Charlotte's Web 2* is as funny as the first, but gives off light in a completely new way. Unlike the meandering and disgraceful 2003 sequel to the beloved 1973 Hanna-Barbera film, the sequel to the 2006 live-action/computer-animation comedy-drama by Gary Winick shows true personality and for how much Paramount cares for E. B. White's creation." He quoted Michael Giacchino's score composition as "delightful and right in the feels" and the character development as "spot-on", though said that Cardigan's portrayal as concerning, as it is the subject of racism. He wrote: "Cardigan the lamb is a character I take some trouble of. Sure, he's a nice character, but the symbolism that he's a black sheep and can't fit in with the other white sheep shows some racism."

### Box office

*Charlotte's Web 2* opened on December 25, 2009 in the United States and Canada, and on December 27, 2009 in overseas markets.

It opened with $29 million domestically with $7.3 million in Thursday night previews. It went on to gross $38 million in its opening weekend, finishing in fourth, breaking even with its expectations of $25-40 million. It then grossed $52.4 million in its first opening week, finishing fifth. Internationally, it opened with $37 million and grossed $59 million in its opening week, finishing third.

Box office returns for *Charlotte's Web 2* closed on July 21, 2010. Domestically, it made $105 million, while it made $163 million overseas for a worldwide total grossing of $268 million against its production budget of $110 million. It became the sixth highest-grossing film of 2009 behind *The Princess and the Frog*.

### Accolades

*Charlotte's Web 2* was nominated for Best Picture at the 87th Academy Awards, but lost to *The Hurt Locker*. However, it won Best Actress for Dakota Fanning and Best Original Screenplay for Susannah Grant and Karey Kirkpatrick.

*More coming soon!*

## Controversy

*Charlotte's Web 2*, while mostly praised in a positive direction, was the subject of controversy involving Cardigan, a black lamb and one of Wilbur's friends in the film, and the topic of racism. In an article published by The Wall Street Journal, there was controversy surrounding Cardigan and his presence as a black lamb trying to fit in with the white flock of lamb. It stated, "It's something that kids won't notice, but the concept of racism for *Charlotte's Web 2* is noticeable for older audiences with Cardigan the lamb -- a black lamb who is Wilbur's friend in the movie -- who tries to fit in with a flock of white lamb."

*More coming soon!*

## 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.