DreamWorks Is Bringing Us Yet Another Robot That Will Make Us Feel Things

Looking to push the boundaries of animation further, DreamWorks’ latest movie The Wild Robot is set to make all of us cry. The animation follows the story of a robot washed up on an island after a typhoon sets it off course.

Here, it must learn how to exist alongside nature, becoming, as the title suggests, a wild robot. DreamWorks is following in the footsteps of major animation companies who have already put out beloved robot-centered films. Disney healed us with Big Hero 6, Pixar made us feel alive with Wall-E, Warner Bros had us crying with The Iron Giant, and it looks like it’s DreamWorks’ turn with this year’s The Wild Robot.

The animated film is based on the illustrated 2016 novel by Peter Brown, telling the story of a robot who, after finding itself washed up on an island, becomes the “mother” to a baby goose who must learn to fly and migrate with the rest of his kind. Though the film initially had a release date of September 20, 2024, the release was pushed back to September 27, 2024.

Check out the latest trailer

The film is helmed by director Chris Sanders and stars a stellar cast with Lupita Nyong’o voicing the titular character ROZZUM unit 7134, or “Roz” for short. Other voices include that of Pedro Pascal, a mischievous fox, Catherine O’Hara as Pinktail, a mother opossum, Bill Nighy as Longneck, a wise elder goose, and Kit Connor as the young goose whom Roz cared for. Everything Everywhere All At Once actress Stephanie Hsu also stars as Vontra, a robot of the same make as Roz sent to retrieve her.

Much like all the other robot-animated films we have been gifted with, it looks as if humanity will learn yet another lesson from our robotic friends. This time around, the trailer seems to show strong themes of how technology and nature can live side by side without the need for destruction.