Earlier this year, it was finally confirmed that a new Wallace & Gromit movie from Aardman Animations is set to arrive on the BBC (in the UK) and Netflix (worldwide) in time for the holidays. Now, it appears to have shifted to the New Year with a January 3 release.
Regardless, with a 70-minute runtime, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl will be the first feature-length adventure for these two icons since 2005's The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2008's A Matter of Loaf and Death clocked in at less than 30 minutes).
Today, we have a new trailer for the movie which highlights the long-awaited return of iconic villain Feathers McGraw. The twisted penguin debuted in 1993's Oscar-winning The Wrong Trousers and, if what we see here is any indication, he's out for revenge!
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl sees Gromit's growing concern 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 worked with Aardman for many years - lending his voice in The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists and Early Man as well as numerous Wallace & Gromit franchise projects alongside Peter Sallis (the original voice of Wallace), stars as the eccentric, cheese-loving inventor from the North of England who lives with his best friend and loyal pooch, Gromit.
The movie will also feature the return of Peter Kay as Chief Inspector (formerly PC) Mackintosh, alongside new cast members Lauren Patel (Everybody's Talking About Jamie), Reece Shearsmith (League of Gentleman), with cameos from Diane Morgan (Afterlife), Adjoa Andoh (Bridgerton) and Lenny Henry (The Lord of the Rings).
Creator of Wallace and Gromit and director of Vengeance Most Fowl, Nick Park, previously said, "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."
Check out the first trailer and poster for Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl below.