Release date: August 21
Cast: Bryan Cranston, Sam Rockwell, Angelina Jolie, Danny DeVito, Helen Mirren
Director: Thea Sharrock
Age rating: PG
If you're looking for a family-friendly movie, then you may want to watch The One and Only Ivan on Disney Plus starting Friday. The heartwarming movie is adapted from the award-winning children's novel of the same name.
The One and Only Ivan features a mix of human characters and CGI animals, one of whom is a silverback gorilla named Ivan (voiced by Sam Rockwell). He's the star of the show at a mall-based circus run by ringmaster Mack (Bryan Cranston).
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The Big Top Mall's crew of performers also includes aging elephant Stella (Angelina Jolie), acrobatic poodle Snickers (Helen Mirren), Frankie the seal (Mike White) and Murphy the toy firetruck-riding rabbit (Ron Funches). They're also friendly with a stray dog (Danny DeVito).
Then, an abused baby elephant (Brooklynn Prince) joins the circus. Stella takes her under her trunk, while Ivan also starts taking care of her with the help of the mall janitor's daughter Julia (Ariana Greenblatt).
Here's everything you need to know about how to watch The One and Only Ivan on Disney Plus. Plus, check out the trailer below:
How to watch The One and Only Ivan in the US, Canada and the UK
The One and Only Ivan movie will be released exclusively on Disney Plus this Friday, August 21.
Disney Plus is available in the US, Canada, UK and western Europe.
The One and Only Ivan cast
The One and Only Ivan cast is divided into actors playing human roles and actors voicing animal roles. The cast members portraying humans are:
- Bryan Cranston as Mack, owner of the Big Top Mall
- Ramón Rodríguez as George, a janitor at the Big Top Mall
- Ariana Greenblatt as Julia, George's daughter
- Indira Varma Eleanor Matsuura as Canface McAfee
And the voice cast includes:
- Sam Rockwell as Ivan, a silverback gorilla
- Angelina Jolie as Stella, an African elephant
- Danny DeVito as Bob, a stray dog
- Helen Mirren as Snickers, a poodle
- Brooklynn Prince as Ruby, a baby African elephant
- Chaka Khan as Henrietta, a chicken
- Ron Funches as Murphy, a white rabbit who drives a toy fire truck
- Phillipa Soo as Thelma, a parrot
- Mike White as Frankie, a seal
The One and Only Ivan reviews
Here's a roundup of The One and Only Ivan reviews:
New York Times: "But mostly The One and Only Ivan consists of fairly standard Disney lessons, about the hardships of losing parents (real and surrogate) and how difficult it is to embrace change."
Commonsense Media: "Parents looking for thoughtful family entertainment with strong messages and endearing talking animals will appreciate this page-to-screen film."
IndieWire: "Thea Sharrock’s touching take on Katherine Applegate’s children’s book gracefully weaves together the obvious (cute talking animals) with some headier ideas (like perhaps those cute talking animals should have rights?), offering up a smart kids’ movie that is likely to really stick with its youngest viewers."
Variety: "The story takes no outsize turns, no big surprise twists. Perhaps the only surprise is how touching it is: a tale that will caress you, and your children, in a way that speaks to something true."
