William Joyce’s beloved tale of a lost toy trying to find his way home is being brought to life over at Netflix. Last year, Netflix announced that it was developing a new limited series called Lost Ollie, which is based on Joyce’s book Ollie’s Odyssey. People have been excited for Lost Ollie since it was first revealed by Netflix, though that hype will certainly grow now that the cast of the series has been revealed.
Frozen‘s Jonathan Groff will be voicing the character of Ollie, the titular toy at the center of the film. As you can probably guess, Ollie will be one of the film’s CG characters. Mary J. Blige and Tim Blake Nelson will also be lending their voices as Rosy and Zozo, respectively. As for the live-action cast, Kesler Talbot will be playing Billy, Ollie’s young and imaginative owner, while Gina Rodriguez and Jake Johnson portray his parents.
Lost Ollie is being directed and executive produced by Peter Ramsey, one of the directors that brought the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse to life. The series was created and written by Shannon Tindle, who also serves as an executive producer. Other EPs include Shawn Levy, Josh Barry, and Brandon Oldenburg. Emily Morris is a co-executive producer.
“I’ve been a toy collector my entire life. My personal collection consists of thousands of toys, some modern and sleek, and others vintage and worn from all the adventures I took them on as a kid,” Teddy Biaselli Director, YA/Family Series at Netflix said in a statement when Lost Ollie was first announced. “And though time has taken its toll, I have held onto them because of the special place they hold in my heart. We’ve all had a toy like that – a confidant, a protector, a sidekick, a best friend. And when we’ve lost a toy…it’s like we’ve lost a part of ourselves.”
Lost Ollie is currently in production in Vancouver, Canada. The first season will consist of four 45-minute episodes.
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