Adam Devine, J.K. Simmons, Sam Richardson and Elsie Fisher will lend their voices to “Hypergalactic,” the CG animated family feature co-created by Naoto Oshima, best known for designing the original “Sonic the Hedgehog” for Sega, and Joseph Chou (“Blade Runner 2022: Black Out,” “Ghost in the Shell”).
The English-language film, directed by David N. Weiss (“Shrek 2,” “The Smurfs”) and now in post-production, marks the most ambition CG feature to date from Toei Animation. The Japanese studio was behind recent anime smash hits “The First Slam Dunk,” which grossed $279 million, and “One Piece Film: Red,” which has so far earned $246.6 million.
Charades are set to launch worldwide sales on “Hypergalatic” at Berlin’s European Film Market, alongside Iwashina Corporation founder Kevin Iwashina, who is also an advisor to Toei.
“Hypergalactic” follows an adventurous teenage girl (Fisher) and her baby brother in the not-so-distant future, after they liberate the forgotten protector of Earth, Ohkan (Devine), in the hopes that he can help reunite them with their missing parents. Together, the unlikely trio sets off on a surprise-filled journey, discovering the deeper meaning of family along the way.
The main producer of “Hypergalactic” is Yoshi Ikezawa from Toei Animation and the executive producers are Kozo Morishita, Katsuhiro Takagi and Tim Kwok.
“With ‘Hypergalactic,‘ the hugely talented game designer Oshima has created a multicultural adventure tale of epic scale – combining memorable global characters with a Japanese Anime aesthetic and a Western approach to storytelling,” said Ikezawa. “We look forward to delivering our brand of quality animation to broader global audiences beyond our existing loyal and committed fan base.”