Exodus Film Group announced today that it has cast Golden Globe winner John Goodman to voice the role of Paul Bunyan in its upcoming CG-animated family feature Bunyan & Babe. The actor, who recently garnered an Emmy nomination for a guest spot on NBC’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, lent his voice to the upcoming DreamWorks Animation release Bee Movie, and will be seen as Speed’s dad in the Warner Bros./Village Roadshow live-action movie based on the Speed Racer cartoon.
Bunyan & Babe will be a modern update of the classic tall tale in which the giant woodsman attempts, with the help of two adventurous kids, to rescue Babe from the evil clutches of a demented circus owner. Three-time Academy Award-winning visual effects supervisor Jim Rygiel (Lord of the Rings trilogy) will direct the pic, working from a script by Michael A. Nickles (This Is Not a Film) and Julia A. Wall, with polishing by Ian LeFrenais and Dick Clement (Flushed Away). Exodus CEO John D. Eraklis is producing with company president and exec producer Max Howard. Theme music was written by late award-winning composer Basil Poledouris, whos credits include Free Willy, The Jungle Book, Lassie and The Hunt for Red October.
‘John is dream casting for us,’ says Howard. ‘He epitomizes the true American spirit of Paul Bunyan.’
Goodman’s most famous animation voice role is Sulley in Disney/Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. In Bunyan, he’ll be joined by Comedian Eddie Griffin (Undercover Brother, Norbit), who will provide the voice of sidekick Babe the Blue Ox.
Los Angeles-based Exodus has formed a strategic alliance with The Weinstein Co. (TWC) to jointly develop, produce and finance a slate of CG-animated feature films, DVDs and television series, with TWC distributing worldwide. In addition to Bunyan & Babe, Exodus production slate includes The Hero of Color City, which is in pre-production and will be distributed in North America by Magnolia Pictures, and Igor, which is in production and will be released by TWC on Oct. 24, 2008. More information can be found at www.ExodusFilmGroup.com.
