Laika Dates ‘Missing Link’ After Acquiring It From Focus: First Look Revealed
Laika‘s fifth film, “Missing Link,” will bow April 19, 2019, breaking free from Focus Features in a North American distribution alliance with Annapurna Pictures. The Yeti adventure opens ahead of DreamWorks’ similarly-themed “Abominable,” which Universal Pictures will release September 27, 2019, directed by Jill Culton (“Open Season”) and voiced by Chloe Bennet.
“Missing Link” is a buddy comedy/adventure about explorer Sir Lionel Frost (Hugh Jackman) and a Yeti named Mr. Link (Zach Galifianakis), who embark on a global quest from the Pacific Northwest in search of the legendary Shangri-La, home of Link’s ancestry. They team up with adventurer Adelina Fortnight (Zoe Saldana), who possesses the only known map to their secret destination.
Once again, Laika embraces acceptance and belonging in its first movie not starring a child hero. Written and directed by Chris Butler (“ParaNorman”), “Missing Link” also features the voice talents of Emma Thompson, Stephen Fry, Timothy Olyphant, Matt Lucas, David Walliams, Amrita Acharia, and Ching Valdes-Aran.
“It’s the most striking thing we’ve ever done,” stated Laika President/CEO Travis Knight, adding that it mixes “keenly felt emotion, madcap humor, and retina-bursting visuals.” Knight is currently directing Paramount’s live-action “Bumblebee: The Movie.” He produced “Missing Link” with Arianne Sutner (“Kubo and the Two Strings,” “ParaNorman”). As Laika’s head of production. Sutner is overseeing the studio’s most ambitious movie, with 110 sets and 65 unique locations.
“Missing Link” has been in production for more than two years, and was intended to be released this year through Focus Features (which had a deal for Laika’s sixth film as well). But Annapurna’s then-president Marc Weinstock (who recently left the company to pursue new opportunities) lured them over to the new distribution company. Laika’s first four films (“Coraline,” “ParaNorman,” “The Boxtrolls,” and “Kubo and the Two Strings”) have all been nominated for Best Animated Feature Oscars, boasting cutting edge tech to advance stop-motion animation as a hybrid of old and new techniques. In 2016, the studio earned the Academy Sci-Tech Oscar for its rapid prototyping, 3D printing system for character animation.
Sign Up Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
