PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie was just released on digital, and it features a number of incredible actors lending their voices to the supersized Nick Jr. characters. Recently, PopCulture.com had a chance to speak with one of the film’s producers, Laura Clunie, as well as co-writer and director Cal Brunker. During the conversation, the filmmakers exclusively revealed to us which celebrity movie star “knocked our socks off.”ย
Among the cast of Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie are A-list celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Chris Rock, Lil Rel Howery, Serena Williams, James Marsden, and Kristen Bell. When asked if there was anyone in particular who stood out when coming in to record their lines, Clunie confessed that it was “such a hard question” because they “feel so lucky” to have everyone who contributed. Bruckner echoed Clunie’s sentiments and then praised the work that actress Taraji P. Henson did as one of the movie’s villains, meteor expert Victoria “Vee” Vance.
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“The one that I think knocked our socks off in a surprising way right out of the gate was Taraji P. Henson as Vee,” Bruckner recalled. “She came in ready to try absolutely anything for the character and it actually caused us to go back and rewrite. When we saw what was working and what she was great at, we immediately went back and said, ‘Okay, that’s the voice. We got to restructure some of this to really let her go wild.’” He added, “Like Laura said, all the cast was amazing, but I think all of us picked our jaw up off the floor after the first time working with Taraji and had us rethink. We’re like, ‘Okay, we’re going in that direction, she’s going to lead us.’ So, that was awesome.”
Clunie then went on to reveal that Henson had “been on our list for a while” and they’d even hoped to get her for the first movie in 2021, PAW Patrol: The Movie. “She just felt perfect for it and you always hope that it’s going to work out and then you cross your fingers,” she said, “but when someone comes in and they just blow it away and they are the character, it’s a pretty remarkable experience.” Bruckner added, “I think too, with such a respected actress, for somebody to come in and have zero, she didn’t hold anything back and that’s always such a wonderful thing, that doesn’t always happen. Yeah, it was great.”
Finally, Clunie offered, “I think we’re also blown away by how much people give when they come into the room. It’s so amazing, everybody was so authentic and really gave it their all and there was no pretense. As you would maybe expect from a celebrity. It was really a great experience to work with this cast.”ย PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movieย is available now on digital and arrives Dec. 12 on Blu-ray and DVD!
