LAIKA's 'Missing Link' Will Arrive in 2019

After a long wait, we recently finally learned that LAIKA were working on a new film. Details on the project codenamed Film Five were scarce, but at least we finally knew it was coming. But is has been quite some time now since Kubo And The Two Strings was released- how much longer will we have to wait to find out more?

As it turns out- not that long. Just a couple of weeks after the film was officially announced, we've now got a slew of new information- including a title, more casting and a release date.

The film is titled Missing Link, and will follow Sir Lionel Frost (voiced by Hugh Jackman). Frost considers himself "the world’s foremost investigator of myths and monsters." In a last-ditch chance to win the acceptance of his peers, he heads to the Pacific Northwest of the US. There he hopes to track down a legendary creature- the so-called Missing Link.

However, when he does find the creature, he gets more than he bargained for. Mr Link (voiced by Zach Galifianakis) is lonely, and convinces Frost to help him find the fabled valley of Shangri-La. Rumour has it that there he will find his long-lost distant relatives.

The voice cast will also include Zoe Saldana as their travelling companion Adelina Fortnight, as well as Emma Thomspon, Stephen Fry, Timothy Olyphant,  Matt Lucas, David Walliams and more.

Missing Link is written and directed by ParaNorman's Chris Butler, with LAIKA CEO and founder (and Kubo director) Travis Knight producing.

The film is set to be their most ambitious yet, with the globe-trotting plot making for a much wider scope than is typically seen in stop-motion. This includes an incredible 110 sets and 65 unique locations. "It's only now with our fifth film that as a team we have the experience, the know-how and the collaborative confidence to even attempt a movie of this size and scope," said producer Arianne Sutner. "I couldn’t be more in awe of our LAIKA crew members. Their endless reserves of imagination were pushed to the limit during the production of this ambitious movie, and we ended up soaring past those limits."

Missing Link will be released in the US in Spring 2019 by Annapurna Pictures. Releases for other territories are to be announced.

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