The Secret Life of Pets facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Secret Life of Pets |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Chris Renaud |
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| Written by |
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| Starring | |
| Music by | Alexandre Desplat |
| Editing by | Ken Schretzmann |
| Studio | |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | June 16, 2016 (AIAFF) July 8, 2016 (United States) |
| Running time | 86 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $75 million |
| Money made | $885.3 million |
The Secret Life of Pets is a 2016 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. It was directed by Chris Renaud, co-directed by Yarrow Cheney, and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, from a screenplay written by Brian Lynch and the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. The film stars the voices of Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Jenny Slate, Kevin Hart, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Hannibal Buress, Bobby Moynihan, Steve Coogan, and Albert Brooks. The film's plot follows the relationship between a spoiled terrier named Max and a giant, unruly dog named Duke. It also follows what other pets do when their owners are gone for the day.
The Secret Life of Pets premiered at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival on June 16, 2016, and was released in theaters in the United States on July 8. The film received generally positive reviews and grossed $885.3 million worldwide, making it the sixth-highest-grossing film of 2016 as well as the year's most profitable release.
A sequel, The Secret Life of Pets 2, was released on June 7, 2019, with Patton Oswalt taking over the role of Max from Louis C.K.
Contents
Plot
A Jack Russell Terrier named Max lives with his owner Katie in a New York City apartment. While she is away, he socializes with other pets in the building: tabby cat Chloe, pug Mel, dachshund Buddy, and budgerigar Sweet Pea. One day, Katie adopts the Newfoundland Duke, making Max envious. Enraged by Max's attitude, Duke tries to abandon Max in an alley, but they are both attacked by cats led by Sphynx cat Ozone who removes their collars and leaves them to be caught by Animal Control. Duke fears that he will be killed if he goes back to the pound.
Max and Duke are rescued by a white rabbit named Snowball, the leader of "the Flushed Pets", a gang of drain-dwelling animals who hate humans because their owners abandoned them. After Max and Duke pretend to despise humans, the Flushed Pets invite them to join. Before they can prove their loyalty through a viper bite, Snowball learns that Max and Duke are domesticated. With their cover blown, Max and Duke escape the drains and board a ferry to Brooklyn, inadvertently killing the viper in the process. Snowball vows revenge and leads the Flushed Pets after them.
Meanwhile, Gidget, a white Pomeranian who is in love with Max, discovers that he is missing and decides to find him, recruiting a red-tailed hawk named Tiberius to find Max, but he mistakenly locates Ozone, whom Gidget coerces into telling what he knows about the dogs. They then enlist Mel, Buddy, Chloe, guinea pig Norman and Sweet Pea. On the way, they meet Pops, an old Basset Hound who helps Gidget and the pets find Max. Gidget and her team later encounter Snowball, who vows to kill them as well, and Norman is captured as the rest of Gidget's team flees.
In the meantime, Duke tells Max about his previous owner Fred, who adopted him as a puppy and loved spending time with him. One day, Duke got lost while chasing a butterfly and was caught by Animal Control, but Fred never came to claim him. They visit Fred's house nearby, confident he will still love Duke and take him back, but they learn from the resident cat Reginald that Fred has died. Heartbroken, Duke accuses Max of attempting to get rid of him and barks at the new homeowners who have just returned to the house and called Animal Control. The handlers catch Max, but Duke interferes long enough for Max to escape and ends up being captured instead.
While trying to rescue Duke, Max is attacked by Snowball who tries to kill him. However, when his gang is captured, Snowball has to work together with Max to save them. They drive a bus into the Animal Control van on the Brooklyn Bridge, stopping traffic. The Flushed Pets encircle Max intending to harm him, unaware of Max's new partnership with Snowball, but they are saved by Gidget and her team. The van plummets into the East River as Max tries to free Duke, Snowball decides to jump into the river to give them the keys to Duke's cage and escape the van.
The entire group returns to the apartment block by pig-driven taxi. Snowball and the Flushed Pets form a new plan to annihilate all humans, but a girl named Molly arrives and adopts Snowball, and the remaining Flushed Pets head back to the drain. At first, Snowball resists, but gives in and lets himself become re-domesticated. The other pets return to their homes and embrace their owners, while Max and Duke finally reunite with Katie.
Cast
- Louis C.K. as Max, a Jack Russell Terrier
- Eric Stonestreet as Duke, a shaggy, brown Newfoundland mix who becomes Max's adoptive brother
- Kevin Hart as Snowball, a white rabbit
- Jenny Slate as Gidget, a Pomeranian dog
- Ellie Kemper as Katie, Max and Duke's owner
- Lake Bell as Chloe, a fat and apathetic grey tabby cat
- Dana Carvey as Pops, an elderly Basset Hound who is paralyzed in his back legs
- Hannibal Buress as Buddy, a laid-back miniature dachshund
- Bobby Moynihan as Mel, a hyperactive pug
- Tara Strong as Sweetpea, a green and yellow budgie parakeet
- Steve Coogan as Ozone, a Cockney-accented Sphynx cat
- Coogan also voices Reginald, a Himalayan cat residing in Brooklyn
- Albert Brooks as Tiberius, a curmudgeonly red-tailed hawk
- Chris Renaud as Norman, a guinea pig who keeps getting lost trying to find his owner
- Michael Beattie as Tattoo, a slow-witted tattooed pig who is one of the Flushed Pets
- Sandra Echeverría as Maria, a character from the La Pasión de la Pasión telenovela that Gidget watches
- Jaime Camil as Fernando, another character from the La Pasión de la Pasión telenovela that Gidget watches
- Kiely Renaud as Molly, a little girl who adopts Snowball
Production
Renaud first became involved with the project in 2012, while he was still working on Despicable Me 2. At that time, Illumination's CEO Chris Meledandri pitched him an idea on a film about what pets do when their caretakers are away. Although Renaud found the premise interesting, he and his team did not know what form the story would take, with them at one point considering making it a murder mystery, before deciding to make something "that was a bit more relatable". Additional characters were created by author Simon Rich while main character design and production design is provided by Eric Guillon.
The team used Jean-Jacques Sempé as an influence in designing the environment and attention was specifically paid to keep the designs "very vertically oriented". In keeping with the tradition of old WB cartoons, the owners' faces are only occasionally seen. The home of the Flushed Pets was created to "hint at the darker side" of pet ownership "without, hopefully, getting too heavy", as well as to explore "this whole mythology in New York of the world that's unseen", while still maintaining the pet theme. The animation was created entirely in France by Illumination Mac Guff.
Music
The original score for the film was composed by Alexandre Desplat. The soundtrack was released on July 1, 2016, by Back Lot Music.
Release
Theatrical
The film was originally scheduled to be released on February 12, 2016, but was pushed back to July 8. It was released in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D using DMR. The Secret Life of Pets premiered at the 2016 Annecy International Animated Film Festival on June 16 and was screened at VidCon. A Despicable Me short film, entitled Mower Minions, was attached to the film's theatrical release.
Home media
The Secret Life of Pets was released on Digital HD on November 22, 2016, and on Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, Ultra HD Blu-ray, and DVD on December 6. In addition to the short film Mower Minions which was released theatrically with the feature film, the releases also include two short films: Norman Television and Weenie. The film was the sixth best-selling title of 2016 by making a revenue of $69.7 million from home media sales with 3.6 million units sold.
Sequels
A sequel, The Secret Life of Pets 2, with director Chris Renaud, producers Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and writer Brian Lynch, was released on June 7, 2019. Louis C.K. was replaced by Patton Oswalt.
In an interview on the podcast The Gary and Kenny Show, Meledandri stated that a third film is in development.
See also
In Spanish: The Secret Life of Pets para niños
