Mowgli (film)

Mowgli
Teaser poster with original release date
Directed by	Andy Serkis
Produced by	Steve Kloves Jonathan Cavendish David Barron
Screenplay by	Callie Kloves
Based on	The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
Starring	Christian Bale Cate Blanchett Naomie Harris Andy Serkis Matthew Rhys Freida Pinto Rohan Chand Benedict Cumberbatch
Music by	Nitin Sawhney
Cinematography	Michael Seresin
Edited by	Mark Sanger Alex Marquez Jeremiah O'Driscoll
Production company	The Imaginarium
Distributed by	Netflix
Release date	2019 (2019)
Country	United Kingdom United States
Language	English

Mowgli is an upcoming adventure fantasy film directed by Andy Serkis and written by Callie Kloves, based on The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. The film stars Rohan Chand, Matthew Rhys and Freida Pinto, along with voice and motion capture performances from Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Benedict Cumberbatch, Naomie Harris and Serkis.

Talks of a new Jungle Book film from Warner Bros. began in 2012 and various directors, including Steve Kloves, Ron Howard and Alejandro González Iñárritu, were approached before Serkis was confirmed in March 2014. Much of the cast signed on that August and principal photography began in March 2015. Filming took place in South Africa and at Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, England.

Originally scheduled to be released in October 2016 by Warner Bros., the film was delayed numerous times to work on the visual effects and to create space between itself and the April 2016 release of Disney's own Jungle Book adaptation. In July 2018, Warner Bros. sold the rights for the film to Netflix, who in turn scheduled it for a 2019 release.

Premise

The story follows the upbringing of the human child Mowgli (Rohan Chand) raised by a pack of wolves in the jungles of India. As he learns the often harsh rules of the jungle, under the tutelage of a bear named Baloo (Andy Serkis) and a black panther named Bagheera (Christian Bale), Mowgli becomes accepted by the animals of the jungle as one of their own, except for one; the fearsome tiger Shere Khan (Benedict Cumberbatch). But there may be greater dangers lurking in the jungle, as Mowgli comes face to face with his human origins.^[1]

Cast

• Rohan Chand as Mowgli
• Matthew Rhys as John Lockwood
• Freida Pinto as Messua

Production

A number of writers, directors, and producers have been connected with the film during its development. In April 2012, Warner Bros. Pictures announced that it was developing the film with Steve Kloves in talks to write, direct, and produce it.^[2] It was reported in December 2013 that Kloves would produce the film, but that Alejandro González Iñárritu was in talks to direct it, from a screenplay by Kloves' daughter Callie.^[3] However, in January 2014, Iñárritu left the project due to scheduling conflicts with Birdman and The Revenant.^[4][5] In February 2014, it was reported that Ron Howard was in talks to direct, and would produce the film with Brian Grazer through their Imagine Entertainment company.^[5] The next month it was announced that Andy Serkis would direct and produce the film with collaborator Jonathan Cavendish of The Imaginarium, along with Steve Kloves; still from Callie Kloves' script and he will also do the voice and performance capture for Baloo.^[6] The production designer would be Gary Freeman, the editor would be Mark Sanger, and the costume designer would be Alexandra Byrne.^[7]

In August 2014, Benedict Cumberbatch joined the film to voice the villain role of Shere Khan.^[8] Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Naomie Harris, Tom Hollander, Eddie Marsan, Peter Mullan and Rohan Chand were announced the following day.^[9] Jack Reynor was added to the cast in March 2015 as Mowgli's Brother Wolf.^[7] It was announced in April 2015 that Matthew Rhys was in talks to play the human role of John Lockwood.^[10] In May 2015, it was confirmed that Freida Pinto would be playing an unspecified live-action role along with Rhys and Chand,^[11] later confirmed to be Mowgli's adoptive mother.^[12]

Principal photography officially began on March 9, 2015.^[7] It was filmed in South Africa and at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in England.^[13]

Release

The film, originally titled Jungle Book: Origins, was originally set for an October 2016 release by Warner Bros.^[14] In December 2014, WB shifted the date to October 2017, allowing more time for further work on the visual effects.^[15] In April 2016, just before the wide release of Disney's The Jungle Book, the film's release date was moved to October 19, 2018.^[16] In October 2017, Andy Serkis revealed the working title of his movie to be Mowgli: Tales from the Jungle Book.^[17] In December, the official title was trimmed to Mowgli.^[1] Serkis has stated that the film would be "darker" and more "serious" in tone than from previous Jungle Book adaptations.^[18] In March 2018, Serkis said first footage would be released "very soon".^[19] The first trailer and a behind-the-scenes featurette both premiered on May 21, 2018.^[20][21]

In July 2018, it was announced that Netflix had purchased the worldwide distribution rights of the film from Warner Bros. and would set a 2019 release date, including a theatrical 3D release.^[22] At the time of the announcement, Deadline Hollywood described the film of "over-baked and over-budget" and said it allowed Warner Bros. to avoid "Pan-like box office bomb headlines" and saved them millions of dollars for not needing to promote the film.^[23] Speaking of the move, Serkis stated:

"I'm really excited about Netflix for Mowgli. Now, we avoid comparisons to the other movie and it's a relief not to have the pressure. I've seen the 3D version, and it's exceptional, a different view from the 2D version, really lush and with great depth, and there will be some kind of theatrical component for that. What excites me most is the forward thinking at Netflix in how to present this, and the message of the movie. They understand this is a darker telling that doesn't fit it into a four quadrant slot. It's really not meant for young kids, though I think it's possible that 10 or above can watch it. It was always meant to be PG-13, and this allows us to go deeper, with darker themes, to be scary and frightening in moments. The violence between animals is not gratuitous, but it's definitely there. This way of going allows us to get the film out without compromise."^[22]

References

External links

• Mowgli on IMDb