It looks like the wheels are finally moving on Universal’s new animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch. Though the project was first announced back in April 2016, along with the reveal that Benedict Cumberbatch was voicing the titular character, news went quiet for a long while until the first poster arrived in December. Now, a short teaser trailer has landed, giving us our first look at Cumberbatch’s green meanie in action.
Not that we actually get to hear the Doctor Strange star voicing the character, mind you. The 30 second teaser is a silent bit of fun which sees the Grinch at home with his loveable dog Max watching figure skating on the TV. It turns out that this is a lifelong dream of the Grinch’s, as he proceeds to daydream about winning everyone over with his skating skills… before he comes to his senses and pulls himself together, that is.
Naturally, this teaser is a tie-in to the currently-unfolding Winter Olympics, which are being hosted in PyeongChang. Hence the tagline: “Everyone can dream.”
The footage we have here follows on from the aforementioned poster, which featured the Grinch as a cute kid. It seems, then, that the marketing for the movie is focusing on getting the audience on the side of the notorious grouch rather than emphasizing his more villainous qualities. Like, you know, stealing Christmas.
As such, it looks like the film will make the Grinch a much more sympathetic character than Jim Carrey’s live-action take from the 2000 movie, which played up his kooky, anti-social qualities. Which, it turns out, pretty much describes Carrey’s mood when making the pic.
The Grinch is a co-production between Universal and Illumination Entertainment, most known for creating the Despicable Me franchise. It’s directed by Peter Candeland and Yarrow Cheney and is set to steal its way into theaters on November 9th.
