David Farnor | On 21, Nov 2024

“There’s clearly been a mistake…” That’s the sound of Wallace and Gromit returning to our screens this Christmas – and a new trailer gives us a first taste of Vengeance Most Fowl.

Vengeance Most Fowl is Wallace & Gromit’s return to their home at the BBC, 16 years after their previous adventure. The 79-minute film sees loyal dog Gromit growing concerned as the cheese-loving Wallace becomes over-dependent on his inventions – which proves justified when Wallace creates a ‘smart gnome’ that seems to develop an evil mind of its own. As events begin to spiral out of control, it’s up to Gromit to put aside his qualms and battle sinister forces, or Wallace may never be able to invent again.

But who could possibly be behind such evil actions? Enter their arch-nemesis, Feathers McGraw, last seen in 1993’s The Wrong Trousers, a calculating penguin with a red rubber glove on his head to disguise himself as a chicken.

Ben Whitehead, who has stepped into the shoes of the late Peter Sallis, will once again voice Wallace. Peter Kay will voice Chief Inspector (formerly PC) Mackintosh, alongside new cast members Lauren Patel (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Lloyd of the Flies) as his latest eager recruit PC Mukherjee, plus Reece Shearsmith (League of Gentleman, Inside No.9). The film also features cameos from Diane Morgan (Afterlife, Motherland) as a local TV news reporter, Adjoa Andoh (Bridgerton, Invictus) as the judge, Muzz Khan (Brassic, Galavant) as the host of Up North News, and Lenny Henry (Three Little Birds, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power) as Mr Convenience.

Made by Aardman, it is directed by Nick Park (creator of Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep) and Merlin Crossingham (Creative Director, Wallace & Gromit and Animation Director, Early Man) with the story written by Nick Park and Mark Burton (Madagascar, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, Shaun the Sheep Movie). The soundtrack has been composed by Julian Nott and Lorne Balfe.

The film will premiere on BBC iPlayer and BBC One on Christmas Day – and, outside of the UK, will be available globally on Netflix from 3rd January 2025.

 

Wallace and Gromit return in Vengeance Most Fowl

8th June 2024

Wallace and Gromit will return to our screens this Christmas to face Vengeance Most Fowl.

The stop-motion duo first made their debut back in 1989 with the lunar adventure A Grand Day Out. That short film was one of a number that led to a feature film, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit in 2005. Since then, they have had a further short film – A Matter of Loaf and Death in 2008 – but stop-motion studio Aardman have since moved on to other projects, including Chicken Run and, most recently, Chicken Run 2 for Netflix.

Now, Aardman has announced that a second feature-length outing is on the way for Wallace and Gromit, in the form of Vengeance Most Fowl – and it will be a sequel to 1993 short film The Wrong Trousers.

That short saw the duo cross paths with Feathers McGraw, a manipulative and calculating penguin with a red rubber glove on his head to disguise himself as a chicken. Already a wanted criminal, he rented out a room at their house where he sought to use Wallace’s techno trousers to steal a large, blue diamond. Rightfully behind bars ever since, he’s now back for revenge.

Now, McGraw will be back for the 70-minute film Vengeance Most Fowl, which will see Gromit’s concerns grow as Wallace becomes over-dependent on his inventions – which proves justified when Wallace invents a smart gnome that seems to develop an evil mind of its own. But who or what could be the cause? As events begin to spiral out of control, it’s up to Gromit to put aside his qualms and battle sinister forces, or Wallace may never be able to invent again.

Ben Whitehead, who has stepped into the shoes of the late Peter Sallis, will once again voice Wallace, the cheese-loving inventor from the North of England who lives with his best friend and loyal pooch, Gromit. Peter Kay will voice Chief Inspector (formerly PC) Mackintosh, alongside new cast members Lauren Patel (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Lloyd of the Flies), Reece Shearsmith (League of Gentleman, Inside No.9), with cameos from Diane Morgan (Afterlife, Motherland), Adjoa Andoh (Bridgerton, Invictus) and Lenny Henry (Three Little Birds, The Lord of the Rings). Details of their roles will be revealed in due course.

Creator of Wallace and Gromit and Director of Vengeance Most Fowl, Nick Park, says: “I’d had the idea of a film about garden gnomes turning bad for more than a decade, but I could never work out what made them bad. It occurred to me that the single most asked question I get when I meet fans is, will the penguin Feathers McGraw, Wallace and Gromit’s original antagonist from The Wrong Trousers 30 years ago, ever return? We’ve had fun bringing him back in cameo capacities but now, three decades on, it felt like the right time. Then it hit me: What if Feathers was involved with these gnomes? We’re hoping that this film will appeal to fans of “Gnome Noir” everywhere and that people will be gratified when they see what Feathers has been up to since The Wrong Trousers.”

Directed by Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham (Creative Director, Wallace & Gromit and Animation Director, Early Man) with the story written by Nick Park and Mark Burton (Madagascar, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, Shaun the Sheep Movie). The screenplay is by Mark Burton and the film is produced by Richard Beek.

The film will premiere on BBC this Christmas and, outside of the UK, will be available on Netflix this winter.

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