Blu and Jewel are back for another fine-feathered flick full of adventure and laughs. We sat down with the cast to find out about their animated characters and favorite moments of the movie.
We asked The Social Network star Jesse Eisenberg if he could relate to his nerd-bird character Blu.
“He grew up in Minnesota, he never learned to fly. I can relate to half of that,” Eisenberg said.
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When we sat down with Jamie Foxx and George Lopez, however, it was very clear to them that Eisenberg was perfectly cast as Blu. Foxx got the Rio 2 cast together on his show Foxxhole. When Eisenberg started to talk, Foxx said, “He is that bird. You’re really that dude.”
One important scene in the film is when Blu has to meet Jewel’s father, the formidable Eduardo (Andy Garcia). We asked Garcia if he’s as protective as Eduardo when it comes to his own daughters.
“There’s an element of that, looking them in the eye, letting them know you know where they live. I think that’s part of our duty,” Garcia said.
We asked Hathaway, who voiced Jewel, if her dad behaved in a similar fashion.
“My dad was tough on the guys I brought home, like Andy was saying. If he could give them a handshake, look them in the eyes and see something good in there, then he would relax, but there were a few he just hated. But he was right about every single one, I’ve got to hand it to him,” Hathaway said.
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About her favorite moment in the film, Hathaway said, “‘Beautiful Creatures’ — I just love that song, and it’s such a gorgeous moment of joy in the film, and the way Carlos [Saldanha the director] managed to set a Busby Berkeley-inspired number in the middle of the Amazon, it made me so happy.”
We asked comedian George Lopez about the differences between voice acting and acting on camera.
“You rely on your imagination more. With an actor, you’re looking at the actor, you’re reacting to him. But in the recording of it, you’re using your imagination to create that picture while you’re doing your voice,” said Lopez.
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Kristin Chenoweth and Jemaine Clement play Gabi and Nigel, the villains in the story. We asked them if they enjoyed playing bad guys.
“It’s always the most fun,” Chenoweth said.
“You can go bigger, they’re crazy, obnoxious,” Clement said. Watch the video to find out what song they’d most like to dance to in a flash mob.
We also spoke to Janelle Monáe and Sérgio Mendes, who both contributed music to the film. We asked them about what served as their inspiration.
“I just wanted to get a song that captured hope and the whole concept of celebrating with the people you love,” Monáe said.
Mendes agreed, saying, “The film is very much about family, but Carlos also touched on the subject of nature and the problem with the deforestation of the Amazon. That was treated with humor, of course, but it was very important he touched on that subject. The Amazon is the lungs for our planet. Those trees are very important.”
Rio 2 opens in theaters on April 11.
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