'Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle' to premiere globally on Netflix on 7 Dec
Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, the Andy Serkis-directed big-budget fantasy flick that’s been three years in the making, will premiere on Netflix globally on 7 December.
Serkis announced the release date for his adaptation of the Rudyard Kipling classic The Jungle Book on Thursday (8 November). He was in town for Netflix’s event at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore to promote its upcoming content slate.
“I wanted to make an emotional version of this story, which has already been told many times,“ Serkis said. “I wanted to explore being an outsider. Being dislodged, being other. It is a hugely contemporary idea that could do with exploration.“
The combination live-action/CGI film stars the largest ever A-list cast of motion capture actors. The cast includes Rohan Chand in the title role, with Christian Bale as Bagheera, Cate Blanchett as Kaa, Benedict Cumberbatch as Shere Khan, Naomie Harris as Nisha, and Serkis as Baloo.
Warner Bros. originally held the global rights to Mowgli, which was meant for a 2016 release with the title Jungle Book: Origins. However, the studio repeatedly delayed the film’s release after Disney’s The Jungle Book premiered first that year. Netflix snapped up the rights in July this year.
Actor-director Serkis is famous for his motion capture performances as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings, King Kong in Peter Jackson’s film of the same name, and the ape Caesar in the recent Planet of the Apes reboot.
Besides being streamed by Netflix, Mowgli will get a limited theatrical release in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and London on 29 November with a wider release in the US and UK to follow.
At its event, Netflix also announced a line-up of upcoming original Asian content to underline its commitment to sharing stories from the region with the world.
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