Big Bug Man
| Big Bug Man | |
|---|---|
 Official poster | |
| Directed by |
|
| Written by | Bob Bendetson |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | Brendan Fraser Marlon Brando |
| Music by | Karyn Rachtman |
Production company | Studio-Free Studio |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $20 million[4] |
Big Bug Man is an unreleased American animated television film starring Brendan Fraser and Marlon Brando. The film, a Studio-Free Studios Production, was written by Bob Bendetson, who also wrote episodes for the TV show The Simpsons. It was directed by Bendetson and Peter Shin.
It was originally scheduled for release between 2006 and 2008, but it was never released or distributed. The film is Brando's last known film work.
Plot
[edit]Candy company worker Howard Kind (Brendan Fraser) gains special abilities after being bitten by insects.
Production
[edit]The film is hand-drawn. The production of the film cost approximately US$20 million.[4]
Marlon Brando during the production
[edit]Brando was originally asked to be the voice of Nicholas Dunderbeck, but Brando thought it would be fun to voice the old lady Mrs. Sour instead.
Mrs. Sour is only in three scenes, so it took only one day to record the voice of this character.[5] According to the director Bob Bendetson, Brando wore a blond wig, a dress, white gloves, and full makeup while recording the voice of Mrs. Sour. Bendetson believes this was part humorous, and part wanting to get into character. Bendetson said "About halfway through he took off the wig because he was getting too hot."[5] According to the film's executive producer Gabriel Grunfeld, Brando described the part as "the most fun I've had since playing Mark Antony in Julius Caesar." Grunfeld said that even though Brando was frail, he was full of energy and invention.[4]
The recording took place in Marlon Brando's home, on June 10, 2004. By this point in his life, Brando was on oxygen six hours a day.[5] He died the next month, on July 1, 2004.
Characters
[edit]
- Howard Kind – voiced by Brendan Fraser. A soft and unfortunate employee of the candy factory, who accidentally gets bitten by bugs, and becomes the Big Bug Man
- Mrs. Sour – voiced by Marlon Brando. The founder, leader and matriarch of the big and corrupt Mrs. Sour Candy Company
- Petfarkin
- Nicholas Dunderbeck – runs the Mrs. Sour Candy Company
- Ellie Rose
- Sidney Looper
- Seen It All Jackson
- Heard It All Jackson, a dog
Michael Madsen also lent his voice to the movie in an unspecified role.
References
[edit]- ^ "Big Bug Man (2008) - Full cast and crew". IMDb. Archived from the original on July 17, 2006. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
- ^ "Yogis for Kerry". LA Weekly. July 22, 2004. Retrieved 2008-02-28.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Big Bug Man - Bios Page". bigbugman.com. Archived from the original on 2008-02-25. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
- ^ a b c Thomas, Archie (July 8, 2004). "Brando's last role: an evil old lady". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
- ^ a b c "Brando's Last Role: An Old Lady". CBS News. July 14, 2004. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
External links
[edit]- Big Bug Man at IMDb