Garfield is back.
Chris Pratt will return to voice the classic character in Alcon Entertainment’s upcoming animated sequel to last year’s “The Garfield Movie,” based on Jim Davis’ beloved comic strip. Sony Pictures will once again distribute globally (excluding China).
The first film, which saw Garfield reconnect with his father (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson), was surprisingly solid hit, grossing over $260 million worldwide. That’s a lot of lasagna!
Alcon acquired the rights from Davis, who will serve as an executive producer on the sequel with Bridget McMeel from Amuse. John Cohen and Steven P. Wegner will serve as producers along with Alcon principals Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson, who made the announcement. Pratt will also serve in a producer role on the film.
Namit Malhotra’s production company Prime Focus Studios will co-produce the film alongside Alcon Entertainment, with Malhotra also serving as a producer. DNEG Animation will return as animation partner, which is a very good thing, considering their work on the first film is downright phenomenal.
Producers are currently in talks with potential writers and directors and additional casting will be announced shortly.
Pratt has a long association with animated features, beginning with “The Lego Movie” in 2014 (he returned for its sequel in 2019), Pixar’s “Onward” in 2020 and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” in 2023. He starred in “The Electric State” for Netflix earlier this year (which was not animated but had plenty of animated characters) and has the thriller “Mercy” coming out in January from Amazon MGM Studios. Pratt will also return for the “Super Mario Bros” sequel, scheduled for spring 2026.
The “Garfield” comic strip debuted in June 1978 and quickly became one of the fastest-growing comic strips of all time, appearing in 2,580 newspapers and journals. (It started out with 41 newspapers.) The strip currently holds the record for the most widely syndicated comic strip in the world.
Pratt is repped by UTA, Rise Management, and Sloane, Offer, Weber and Dern. Jeannette Hill, Executive Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs at Alcon Entertainment, negotiated the deal on the company’s behalf.
