Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines of May 16
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John Krasinski's newest movie "IF" is full of A-list stars voicing the many animated characters in the film.
"IF," a movie directed, written and produced by Krasinski, is about a young girl named Bea (Cailey Fleming) who discovers that she holds the power of seeing people's imaginary friends, called IFs for short.
Her neighbor, Cal (Ryan Reynolds), possesses the same unique ability. The two team up in order to help forgotten IFs reconnect with kids. This plot line leaves a lot of room for actors to voice the adorable animated characters making up the large majority of the cast.
Steve Carell, Maya Rudolph and more mega-stars lent their voices to the 2024 movie "IF." (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP; Jonny Cournoyer/Paramount Pictures via AP)
The cast list of this movie includes several A-list stars voicing animated characters. Take a look at the list of massive stars and the characters they voice in the movie.
- John Krasinski
- Emily Blunt
- Blake Lively
- Steve Carell
- Phoebe Waller-Bridge
- George Clooney
- Louis Gossett Jr.
- Matt Damon
- Bradley Cooper
- Amy Schumer
- Matthew Rhys
- Awkwafina
- Sebastian Maniscalco
- Richard Jenkins
- Christopher Meloni
- Maya Rudolph
- Sam Rockwell
- Jon Stewart
1. John Krasinski
Not only did Krasinski write, produce and direct this film, he also starred in it.
Krasinski plays two different roles in "IF." He appears in the film as Bea's father and also voices the animated character Marshmallow Man.
During the many interviews Krasinski did ahead of this film, he expressed that he had made this movie for his kids.
John Krasinski directed, wrote, produced and starred in the film. (Paramount Pictures via AP)
"I've always wanted to make a movie for my kids, but I wasn't sure what to do," Krasinski told CBS Mornings. "I had this idea to do something with imaginary friends, but I wasn't sure what my take on it would be."
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"I spent hours standing in the threshold of a door with Emily [Blunt], watching our girls go into this magical world that as parents, were not invited into," Krasinski told the outlet. "It wasn't just the joy and how much fun they were having, it was the authenticity, the idea that they were themselves, and they were fearless, and they were doing all these amazing things, doing all these amazing voices and then the pandemic hit. I saw their lights starting to go out, and I saw that the world started to seep in, and that is the definition of growing up."
This movie marks the fourth film Krasinski has directed. His directorial debut was in 2016 with the movie "The Hollars." He then directed "A Quiet Place" (2018) and "A Quiet Place Part II" (2020).
Before directing movies, he directed a few episodes of "The Office."
2. Emily Blunt
This movie is quite the family affair, with Emily Blunt, Krasinski's wife and a popular actress also voicing a character.
Blunt voices Unicorn in the 2024 film. This is not the first time she and Krasinski have worked together. They were also both in "A Quiet Place" and "A Quiet Place Part II."
Emily Blunt voices the animated character Unicorn in the movie. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
The release of "IF" closely follows that of "The Fall Guy" starring Blunt and Ryan Gosling.
3. Blake Lively
Blunt and Krasinski aren't the only married-couple part of this film. Reynolds is joined by wife Blake Lively, who voices Octopuss. The two also worked together in the 2011 film "Green Lantern."
Lively's character is a cat wearing an octopus costume.
Lively, who had her breakthrough in the hit show "Gossip Girl," is the star of the upcoming movie "It Ends with Us." The highly anticipated movie is an adaptation of the popular book by Colleen Hoover.
4. Steve Carell
"IF" is full of husband and wife duos and long-awaited reunions. This movie serves as an "Office" reunion, with Steve Carell a part of the cast, as the main imaginary friend character named Blue. Carell's character in the movie helps Bea and Cal on their mission of finding imaginary friends.
Carell and Krasinski starred alongside each other in "The Office" as Michael Scott and Jim Halpert, respectively.
Steve Carell plays the main imaginary friend, Blue, in the movie. (Paramount Pictures via AP)
"He directed some episodes of 'The Office,’ so I was familiar with him as a director, and he’s a great director — he’s very thorough, he’s smart, and he knows how to work with actors, because he is one," Carell told The Hollywood Reporter at the premiere of the movie. "It was just a joy from beginning to end, and I jumped at the chance to work with him again, partly just to be with him. He’s a good friend, and I hadn’t seen him in a while, so it was nice to catch up."
5. Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Phoebe Waller-Bridge voices the imaginary character Blossom. The imaginary friend played by the actress belonged to Bea's grandmother, according to People.
Waller-Bridge is known for projects like the television show "Fleabag" (2016-2019).
She has also been in several movies, like "Solo: A Star Wars Story" (2018) and "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" (2023).
Phoebe Waller-Bridge is in the movie as the animated character Blossom. (Paramount Pictures via AP)
6. George Clooney
George Clooney joins the cast of "IF" as Spaceman.
The animated family movie is a different role for the Oscar-winning actor. Many of his movies have a more serious tone, although Clooney did lead the cast of the 2009 animated film "Fantastic Mr. Fox." Similar to "IF," this animated movie was full of A-list stars.
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Clooney is known for his roles in movies, including the "Ocean's" franchise (2001, 2004, 2007), "Out of Sight" (1998), "Syriana" (2005), "Michael Clayton" (2007) and "Up in the Air" (2009), along with many others.
7. Louis Gossett Jr.
The late Louis Gossett Jr. voices Lewis, an elderly teddy bear in "IF."
The actor died on March 29, 2024, when he was 87 years old. This film marks one of the last roles he played.
Gossett Jr. held many popular roles throughout his career. In 1983, he won an Oscar for his part in "An Officer and a Gentleman."
8. Matt Damon
Matt Damon voices Sunny, a flower, in the movie. The "Good Will Hunting" (1997) star and co-writer detailed his experience working with Krasinski during the film's premiere.
Matt Damon talked about working with John Krasinski in "IF" during a red carpet interview at the premiere of the film. (Nina Westervelt/Variety via Getty Images)
"I've worked with John a lot over the course of my career, and I know him really well because he's a very good friend of mine, but this movie has so much of him in it," Damon told ScreenSlam at the premiere of the film.
"It's got just a beautiful message and so much love and joy, and I think this is more him than anything he's ever done, so it was a pleasure working with him, a pleasure watching him do it," the actor continued.
9. Bradley Cooper
Bradley Cooper, an actor known for his work in movies like "Silver Linings Playbook" (2012), "A Star Is Born" (2018) and "The Hangover" film series (2009, 2011, 2013) voices Ice, a cup of ice water, in the animated film.
Bradley Cooper brought his daughter with him to the premiere of the family-friendly film. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Cooper brought his daughter, Lea, to the premiere of the movie. In an adorable video that circulated on TikTok, his daughter walks with him on the carpet and sweetly points to her dad's animated character displayed on the carpet's backdrop.
10. Amy Schumer
Amy Schumer plays Gummy Bear in "IF."
The comedian is known for her roles in films like "Trainwreck" (2015) and "I Feel Pretty" (2018).
Schumer is also part of the cast of Jerry Seinfeld's movie "Unfrosted," a mostly fictional, comedic telling of the origins of Pop-Tarts and the rivalry between Kellogg's and Post.
11. Matthew Rhys
Ghost is voiced by Matthew Rhys in the 2024 film.
The actor is widely known for his roles in TV shows like "Brothers & Sisters" (2006-2011) and "The Americans" (2013-2018).
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He has also acted in several movies, like "The Post" (2017) and "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" (2019).
12. Awkwafina
Awkwafina is Bubble in "IF."
Awkwafina started gaining fame after starring in "Ocean's Eight" in 2018 and "Crazy Rich Asians" the same year. Shortly after, she was in "Jumanji: The Next Level" (2019) and Marvel's "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" (2021).
Awkwafina has voiced characters in a lot of different movies, including "IF." (Nina Westervelt/Variety via Getty Images)
Awkwafina has had prior experience in voice acting leading up to this new role. She has voiced characters in movies including "The Angry Birds Movie 2" (2019), "The Bad Guys" (2022), "The Little Mermaid" (2023), "Migration" (2023) and "Kung Fu Panda 4" (2024).
13. Sebastian Maniscalco
Magician Mouse is an imaginary friend voiced by comedian Sebastian Maniscalco.
Shortly before "IF," Maniscalco was in another animated film, "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" (2023), where he voiced the character Spike.
He was also in the recent movie "Unfrosted" (2024) and TV series "The Rookie" (2023).
14. Richard Jenkins
Actor Richard Jenkins voices Art Teacher in "IF."
The list of movies starring Jenkins is a long one, having worked on films such as "The Visitor" (2007), "The Shape of Water" (2017) and the show "Dahmer-Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story" (2022).
Jenkins also starred in the 2008 movies "Step Brothers" and "Burn After Reading."
15. Christopher Meloni
Christopher Meloni switched up from the world of crime to one full of imagination for the movie "IF," where he voices the character Cosmo.
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Even though this movie has a lot different tone than the TV show he is widely known for, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," the two parts he plays surprisingly do have similarities.
Christopher Meloni is known for his role in "Law & Order." ( Jason Mendez/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)
In "SVU" and the newer 2021 spinoff, "Law & Order: Organized Crime," Meloni plays Detective Elliot Stabler.
In "IF," Meloni's animated character is also a detective.
16. Maya Rudolph
The pink alligator named Ally is voiced by Maya Rudolph.
In addition to comedies like "Grown Ups" (2010) and "Bridesmaids" (2011), Rudolph has done a lot of work in voice acting.
Movies Rudolph has lent her voice to include "Turbo" (2013), "Big Hero 6" (2014), "The Angry Birds Movie" (2016) and "Luca" (2021).
17. Sam Rockwell
Sam Rockwell is the voice of Guardian Dog in "IF."
Rockwell is no stranger to voice acting. He has been in many animated children's movies, like "Trolls World Tour" (2020). He also voiced Ivan in the 2020 movie "The One and Only Ivan."
18. Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart voices Robot in "IF."
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Jon Stewart is known as the former long-time host of "The Daily Show." He hosted the show regularly from 1999 to 2015.
He returned to the show in 2024 but only hosts on Monday nights.
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