From the screenplay of Charlie Kaufman — writer behind “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004), “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” (2020) and “Synechdoche, New York” (2008) — and Sean Charmatz’s direction comes “Orion and the Dark,” a new animated adventure available to stream on Netflix starting Feb. 2. Based on Emma Yarlett’s book, the story centers on young Orion (voiced by Jacob Tremblay) who grows up anxious but learns to face his fears thanks to a friend, Dark, he made one night.
Dark doesn’t work alone, as Orion learns. Other night entities, and the entity Light, balance out the rhythms of the world. Colin Hanks voices the older version of Orion who tells his story to his daughter Hypatia (voiced by Mia Akemi Brown) when she has trouble going to bed.
Here are the cast and characters of DreamWorks’ “Orion and the Dark”:
Orion (Jacob Tremblay)
Orion is afraid of a lot of things — make that most things. He constantly worries about scenarios that may or may not happen to him, but his worst fear is the dark until the entity visits him one night.
Jacob Tremblay is known for voicing Luca Paguro in “Luca” (2021) from Pixar as well as Flounder in the live-action “Little Mermaid” starring Halle Bailey. He played Jack in “Room” (2015) alongside Brie Larson and Auggie in “Wonder” (2017).
Dark (Paul Walter Hauser)
Dark is a night entity who brings about nighttime, but he knows a lot of children are afraid of him. He even has a long Santa-like list to prove it. He brings about evenings, nights and early mornings with his co-entities.
Paul Walter Hauser won an Emmy for his role as Larry Hall in the Apple TV+ limited series “Black Bird.” He is also known for playing Shawn in “I, Tonya” (2017), Ivanhoe in “BlacKkKlansman” (2018), Richard Jewell in “Richard Jewell” (2019) and Travis in “The Afterparty.”
Sweet Dreams (Angela Bassett)
Sweet Dreams is another night entity who works with Dark. She brings a sense of calm and hope to people’s dreamscapes by unearthing what is in their subconscious minds as they dream.
Angela Bassett is known for playing Queen Ramonda in the “Black Panther” films, Rachel Constantine in “Contact” (1997), Lornette ‘Mace’ Mason in “Strange Days” (1995) and Athena Grant in “9-1-1: Lone Star” and “9-1-1”.
Unexplained Noises (Golda Rosheuvel)
Unexplained Noises is the night entity responsible for those creaks and shuffles and other sounds that set people on edge, particularly at night. She may look like a robot, but she is a true artist in making people uncomfortable.
Golda Rosheuvel is known for playing Agnes in “Lady Macbeth” (2016), Queen Charlotte in both the “Bridgerton” and “Queen Charlotte” shows, Shadout Mapes in “Dune” (2021) and Celia Ojama in four episodes of “Silent Witness.”
Insomnia (Nat Faxon)
Insomnia looks like a neon green mosquito with zeroes in his eyes. His job is to keep people up with all of their worries, new and old. He can also change his voice to sound like those he is trying to wake up and startle into a state of anxiety.
Nat Faxon is known for playing Mark in “Bad Teacher” (2011), Roddy in “The Way Way Back” (2013), Manny in “Club Dread” (2004) and for writing “The Descendants” (2011) starring George Clooney, Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller.
Sleep (Natasha Demetriou)
Sleep drifts around in a daze and droopy nightcap putting people to sleep. Her methods usually involve a pillow used to smother people into sleepy submission or a hammer used to bonk people to sleep.
Natashia Demetriou is known for playing Nadja in “What We Do in the Shadows,” Sophie in “Stath Lets Flats,” the Fortune Teller and Narrator in “The Magician’s Elephant” (2023) and for voicing Wingnut in “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”
Quiet (Aparna Nancherla)
Quiet is a cute, cottonball-like mouse who has the amazing ability to absorb all sound. In a noisy night, Quiet can suck up sounds to bring about a sense of peace.
Nancherla played Anaya in six episodes of “Crashing,” Michelle in five episodes of “Mythic Quest,” Sona in “A Simple Favor” (2018) and Mia in “The Drop” (2022).
