Peter Rabbit Information

Peter Rabbit is a 2018 3D live-action/CGI animated adventure comedy film directed by Will Gluck from a screenplay by Gluck and Rob Lieber, based on the stories of the character of the same name created by Beatrix Potter. The film features voice roles played by James Corden, Daisy Ridley, Margot Robbie, and Elizabeth Debicki, and live action roles played by Domhnall Gleeson, Rose Byrne, and Sam Neill.

The film was released on February 9, 2018. It received mixed reviews from critics and has grossed $25 million.

Plot

Peter Rabbit's feud with the McGregor family reaches new heights as he and Thomas McGregor compete for the affections of a kind animal lover who lives next door.

Cast

• Domhnall Gleeson as Thomas McGregor, a new farmer who seeks to get rid of Peter Rabbit and his mischievous acts.
  • Gleeson also portrays Mr. Jeremy Fisher
• Rose Byrne as Bea, a kind animal lover who Thomas meets next door.
  • Byrne also voices Jemima Puddle-Duck.
• Sam Neill as Mr. McGregor, Thomas' uncle, the old farmer.

Voice cast

• James Corden as Peter Rabbit, a rabbit who constantly performs mischievous acts against the McGregors.
• Daisy Ridley as Cottontail Rabbit, Peter's youngest sister who is the "loose cannon".
• Margot Robbie as Flopsy Rabbit, Peter's middle sister who is nervous and awkward.
• Elizabeth Debicki as Mopsy Rabbit, Peter's eldest sister who is feisty and stubborn.
• Colin Moody as Benjamin Bunny, Peter's cousin who is clumsy.
• Sia as Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, a hedgehog.
• Fayssal Bazzi as Mr. Tod
• Ewen Leslie as Pigling Bland
• Christian Gazal as Felix D"?eer
• Rachel Ward as Peter"?s mother
• Bryan Brown as Peter"?s father
• David Wenham as Johnny Town-Mouse

Production

The film was first revealed in April 2015 through email leaks as a result of the Sony Pictures hack. The official announcement of the film came that December.

On August 4, 2016, it was reported that Will Gluck would be directing the live action/animated film from a script by Gluck and Rob Lieber, with James Corden cast to voice Peter Rabbit and Rose Byrne to play one of the live-action roles. Gluck will also be producing the film along with Zareh Nalbandian of Animal Logic, which will be providing the visual effects and animation for the film.

On September 26, 2016, Daisy Ridley and Elizabeth Debicki had joined the cast, with the live action production scheduled to commence in Sydney, Australia in January 2017. On October 18, Domhnall Gleeson was cast as Mr McGregor, known for chasing rabbits out of his vegetable garden, and on October 24, Margot Robbie joined the cast, expected to voice a bunny. On November 7, Sia was casted to join the film as Mrs Tiggy-Winkle, and Matt Lucas was also cast as Benjamin Bunny.

Filming

On December 18, 2016, a first image of the title character, along with the movie's logo, had been revealed. Production began in December 2016. Live action scenes were filmed at Centennial Park in Sydney. In March 2017, filming took place at Central railway station, Sydney which was depicted as London Paddington station.

In April 2017, a film crew were seen in Ambleside and Windermere in the Lake District. A local toy shop on Compston Road, Ambleside, was adapted to be Mr McGregors'.

Release

Peter Rabbit was originally scheduled to be released on March 23, 2018, but it was moved up to February 9, 2018.

Trailer criticism

The first trailer was met with negative reception from critics and fans of the character, many of whom labelled the film as being too modern and insulting to Beatrix Potter's works. Collider slammed the trailer as "garbage" and a "low brow 'comedy' cringe fest".

Stuart Heritage from The Guardian stated that "the Peter Rabbit film looks like the result of some blisteringly inept manhandling [...] there's something genuinely harrowing about the sight of Peter Rabbit - gentle, Edwardian Peter Rabbit - thoughtlessly injuring some birds, or grabbing a pile of lettuce leaves and making it rain like a banker in a strip club, or literally twerking" and argued "there is no way on Earth that [Beatrix Potter would] have ever given the green light to a slow motion car crash like this."

Metro writer James Baldock found that the trailer was "so gut wrenchingly bad" and that "if the movie lives up to its two minute preview - [it] is set to be the greatest abomination to grace the big screen since The Emoji Movie." He finished by writing "Listen carefully, and you can just about hear the sound of Beatrix Potter, turning furiously in her grave." On November 7, a new trailer for the United Kingdom was released to a more positive reception.

Reception

Box office

In the United States and Canada, Peter Rabbit was released alongside Fifty Shades Freed and The 15:17 to Paris, and was projected to gross around $16 million from 3,725 theaters in its opening weekend, with some estimates as high as $25 million. It ended up making $25 million over the weekend, finishing second at the box office behind Fifty Shades ($38.8 million).

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 58% based on 63 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Peter Rabbit updates Beatrix Potter's classic characters with colorfully agreeable results that should entertain younger viewers while admittedly risking the wrath of purists." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 21 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A-" on an A+ to F scale.

Allergy bullying accusations

Groups in multiple countries are criticizing the film for "allergy bullying" and calling for an apology from Sony. Accusations center around a scene where a character with a known severe allergy to blackberries is pelted with the berries until one goes in his mouth, causing him to enter anaphylactic shock and grab for his Epipen.