Exodus Film Group has hired Tony Leondis (Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch) to direct its CG-animated feature, Igor. Featuring the voices of Christian Slater, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese and Jay Leno, the film will be an extension of the short Igor: Holy Frijoles, which is currently in production at Exodus. The feature will be distributed by The Weinstein Co., which secured deals for most foreign territories at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Igor is described as a playfully irreverent comedy about a mad scientist’s hunchbacked lab assistant who has big dreams of becoming a scientist in his own right and winning first place at the annual Evil Science Fair. Slater will voice the title role while Buscemi comes fresh off his creepy turn in Monster House to play Scamper, a super-intelligent and ill-tempered lab rabbit. Cleese, who’s also working on Shrek 3, is voicing the character of Dr. Glickenstein, Igor’s evil master.
The film is being produced by Exodus president John D. Eraklis and veteran animation executive Max Howard, who has collaborated on such animated blockbusters such as Disney’s The Lion King and Aladdin, and Warner Bros.’ Space Jam and The Iron Giant. The screenplay was written by Chris McKenna, who is currently writing for his third season on the Fox animated TV show American Dad, and is co-writing New Line Cinema’s heist comedy Black and White. Eric Robinson, VP of production and development, is overseeing Igor on behalf of The Weinstein Co.
In addition to helming the direct-to-video Lilo & Stitch sequel, which earned him a 2005 Annie Award for Best Home Entertainment Production, Leondis has lent his writing talents to Disney’s Home on the Range and Kronk’s New Groove, and DreamWorks’ The Prince of Egypt and The Road to El Dorado.
Exodus Film Group’s CG-animation slate also includes The Hero of Color City, which will be distributed by Magnolia Pictures, and Amarillo Armadillo. The studio is also in pre-production on the live-action film Bunyan & Babe, which features comedic actor Eddie Griffin as the voice of the CG-animated Babe the Blue Ox.
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