Morgan Freeman will join the cast of Universal and MRC’s “Ted 2,” the actor’s representative told TheWrap on Wednesday.
In the follow-up to the hit about a foul-mouthed stuffed bear named Ted, Freeman will play a civil rights lawyer who helps Ted resolve legal issues. The film is currently in production in Boston and is bringing back much of the original cast, including Mark Wahlberg. Seth MacFarlane is writing, directing and will voice Ted. The original film grossed $218 million domestically.
Freeman is an executive producer on upcoming CBS pilot “Madam Secretary” starring Tea Leoni and recently voiced Vitruvius in “The Lego Movie,” which earned $210 million domestically. He’s currently co-starring in the Warner Bros. film “Dolphin Tale 2.”
Also read: ‘Dolphin Tale 2’ Review: Harry Connick Swims Into Family-Friendly, Post-‘Blackfish’ Waters
The MacFarlane brand suffered a blow this summer after “A Million Ways to Die at the West” disappointed at the box office. The multi-hyphenate was also hit with a lawsuit in July claiming “Ted” was bases on a web series. In the suit, filed in a U.S. district court, Bengal Mangle Productions claimed that it created a screenplay, “Acting School Academy” in 2008 that featured a character named Charlie — “a teddy bear who lives in a human, adult world with all human friends. Charlie has a penchant for drinking, smoking, prostitutes, and is a generally vulgar yet humorous character.”
The lawsuit hasn’t derailed plans for the film’s release, which is scheduled to debut June 26, 2015. The script was co-written by Alex Sulkin and Wellesley Wild, and the film is produced by Scott Stuber with MRC co-financing the pic.
CAA and Stan Rosenfield & Associates represent Freeman.