Legendary Pictures has announced a new road trip film called “Animal Friends” that will star Ryan Reynolds, Jason Momoa, Vince Vaughn and Aubrey Plaza in an ensemble cast directed by “Keanu” filmmaker Peter Atencio.
Plot details have not been divulged but the project is said to feature live-action and animated characters in an R-rated comedy. Kevin Burrows and Matt Mider, who wrote the Netflix thriller-comedy “The Package,” will handle the script.
Legendary will produce the film alongside Reynolds’ production company Maximum Effort and Prime Focus Studios.
Reynolds, who most recently appeared in the Apple holiday musical “Spirited” alongside Will Ferrell, is set to return to his most famous role in “Deadpool 3,” which will start shooting this summer ahead of a 2024 release. Reynolds has also been busy away from the movie set as owner of the Welsh soccer team Wrexham AFC, whose underdog story is being told in the ongoing Hulu docuseries “Welcome to Wrexham.”
Momoa is set to appear in a pair of major blockbusters with Universal’s “Fast X” in May and Warner Bros.’ “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” in December. Vaughn, who recently wrapped shooting on the Apple TV+ drama series “Bad Monkey,” will next appear in Nic Pizzolatto’s “Easy’s Waltz” alongside Al Pacino. Plaza, who appeared in the acclaimed HBO series “The White Lotus,” will star in Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” and Marvel Studios’ Disney+ series “Agatha: Coven of Chaos” alongside Kathryn Hahn.
Atencio won an Emmy for his work on the Comedy Central series “Key & Peele,” alongside the show’s stars Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, and later directed the pair in the feature film “Keanu.” His upcoming projects include “The Machine,” starring comedian Bert Kreischer, which he directed and produced for Legendary.
Atencio is represented by UTA and Artists First Management. Burrows and Mider are represented by WME, along with Reynolds, Momoa, and Vaughn. Plaza is repped by MGMT Entertainment and attorney, Schreck Rose Dapello Adams Berlin & Dunham.
The project was first reported by Deadline.
