Imagimals 2

Imagimals 2 is an American computer-animated comedy film produced by Universal Animation. It is the 20th film produced by the studio. The sequel to the 2017 film Imagimals, the film is directed by Geo G. and Ash Brannon, from a screenplay by Darren Lemke, and stars the voices of Rob Corddry, John Goodman, Kenan Thompson, Amy Poehler, Anthony Anderson, Allison Janney, and Elizabeth Banks reprising their roles from the first film. Joining the voice cast are Dakota Fanning, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Brooklynn Prince, James Corden, Bruce Dern, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Eden Sher, and Melissa McCarthy.

Originally slated for a worldwide theatrical release by Universal Pictures, plans were changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Imagimals 2 was released theatrically in Canada on September 18, 2020, and digitally on Netflix in other territories on December 21, 2020, while it is scheduled to be theatrically released and on Peacock simultaneously in the United States on March 19, 2021. The film received generally positive reviews, with most critics calling it a huge improvement over the original film.

Plot
Prack and Crushie try to teach their three new children Lily, Lulu, and Junior how to act like an imagimal as well as helping Prack's friend Busho get a little closer to home to see his long-lost family for the first time in years before a new predator named Hunter does.

Voice cast

 * Rob Corddry as Prack
 * John Goodman as Busho
 * Dakota Fanning as Lily
 * Brooklynn Prince as Lulu
 * Jeremy Ray Taylor as Junior
 * James Corden as Peus
 * Kenan Thompson as Moot
 * Amy Poehler as Crushie
 * Bruce Dern as Hunter
 * Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele as Golo and Sammy
 * Anthony Anderson as Sard
 * Kate McKinnon as Sally
 * Dan Fogler as Frank
 * Allison Janney as Lokami
 * Elizabeth Banks as Peggy
 * Eden Sher as Stephanie
 * Melissa McCarthy as Nini
 * Geo G. as The Great Voko
 * Mark Hamill as Gerald and Shoomaka the Zombie
 * John DiMaggio as Wrestling Nate
 * Raymond S. Persi as Hank
 * Samantha Cohen as JoJo
 * Lilly Rodgers as Ash
 * Sophia Hall as Trixie

Additional Voices

 * Steve Alterman
 * Greg Berg
 * William Calvert
 * Robert Clotworthy
 * John Cohen
 * David Cowgill
 * Timothy Cross
 * Terri Douglas
 * Richard Fenn
 * Jennifer Crystal Foley
 * Spencer Ganus
 * Jessica Gee-George
 * Nicholas Guest
 * Jennifer Hale
 * Carter Hastings
 * Eric Jennings
 * William Jennings
 * Joe Kelly
 * Matt Yang King
 * Roy Kobayashi
 * Wendee Lee
 * Hope Levy
 * Greg Marshall
 * Caitlin McKenna
 * Scott Menville
 * Edie Mirman
 * Dan Molina
 * Alicyn Packard
 * Michelle Ruff
 * Patrick Seitz
 * Lloyd Sherr
 * Dennis Singletary
 * Warren Sroka
 * Randy Travelers
 * Audrey Wasilewski
 * Annie Grace Wells
 * Joe Whyte
 * Lisa Wilhoit
 * Debra Wilson
 * Matthew Wood
 * Lynnanne Zager

Development
On April 5, 2017, Universal Animation announced that a sequel to its 2017 film Imagimals was in development, with Rob Corddry, John Goodman, and Kenan Thompson reprising their roles as Prack, Busho, and Moot, respectively. Producer John Cohen and writer Darren Lemke returned for the sequel, while Universal Animation CEO Michael Wildshill reprised his position as executive producer like most of his Universal animated films. Geo G. would also return to direct the sequel, despite having stepped down as director in order to work more on other projects.

In July 2019, Ash Brannon was announced as the film's co-director. Additionally, it was also announced that most of the cast from the first film will reprise their roles in the sequel, joined by James Corden, Melissa McCarthy, Bruce Dern, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Dakota Fanning, Jeremy Ray Taylor, and Brooklynn Prince.

It was suggested by Geo that Brannon had more creative control over this film than its predecessor and that at times he was difficult to work with.

Music
Mark Mothersbaugh, who scored the first film, returned to score the sequel.

Release
Imagimals 2 was originally set for a worldwide theatrical release on March 5, 2021 by Universal Pictures. It was then pushed back to May 21, 2021, before being delayed nearly a year earlier to November 20, 2020. It was moved four more times: to November 6, 2020, February 5, 2021 (as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic), February 12, 2021, and finally March 19, 2021.

On August 19, 2020, Universal Pictures Canada announced the film would be released in Canadian theaters on September 18, 2020. On December 10, 2020, Universal announced that the film will be simultaneously released in theatres and on Peacock on the same day it will release in American theaters. The film was released internationally on Netflix on December 21, 2020.

Marketing
The first trailer was released on March 11, 2020. Its first full trailer was released on June 13, 2020. The final trailer was released on November 9, 2020. Prack appeared floating on the 94th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to promote the upcoming movie.

Box office
In the film's debut Canadian weekend, it grossed $9,174,685 from 500 theaters. Since Canada's grosses are factored into American totals, Imagimals 2 finished first at the box office, and one of the highest weekend totals for a film since the start of the pandemic. IndieWire estimated that had the film had a traditional North American theatrical release it would have opened to $110-115 million, including a $15 million total from Canada.

Critical response
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 75% of critics recommended seeing the film based on 8 reviews, with an average rating of 5.84/10.

Main
To see the main transcript of the film, click here.

Trailers
To see the transcript for the trailers of the film, click here.