Free Birds

This article is about the 2013 animated film by Jimmy Hayward. For the song, see Free Bird. For other uses, see Freebirds (disambiguation).

Free Birds
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJimmy Hayward
Screenplay byJimmy Hayward
Scott Mosier
Story byDavid I. Stern
John J. Strauss
Produced byScott Mosier[1]
Starring
Edited byChris Cartagena
Music byDominic Lewis[2]
Production
companies
Distributed byRelativity Media
Release date
  • November 1, 2013 (2013-11-01)
Running time
91 minutes[3]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$55 million[4]
Box office$110.4 million[4]

Free Birds is a 2013 American animated science fiction comedy buddy film directed by Jimmy Hayward, who co-wrote the screenplay with the film's producer Scott Mosier. The film stars the voices of Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson, and Amy Poehler, with supporting roles by George Takei, Colm Meaney, Keith David, and Dan Fogler. It follows Reggie and Jake, two turkeys who travel back to the first Thanksgiving to prevent turkeys from being domesticated and eaten by humans.

Free Birds was produced by Reel FX Creative Studios as its first theatrical fully animated feature film,[5] and Relativity Media's fourth animated film after Monster House (2006), The Tale of Despereaux (2008), and 9 (2009). Originally titled Turkeys,[6] and scheduled for 2014, the film was released on November 1, 2013.

Free Birds received generally negative reviews from critics and grossed $110.4 million worldwide against a $55 million budget.[7] The film was nominated for the Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Music in a Feature Production, though it lost to Frozen.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference MovieWeb was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Dominic Lewis to Score 'Free Birds'". Film Music Reporter. April 20, 2013. Archived from the original on April 24, 2013. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  3. ^ "Free Birds (3D)". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on December 3, 2021. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  4. ^ a b "Free Birds". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  5. ^ Schwartzel, Erich (October 31, 2013). "For Animation Studio, a Hit or Turkey?". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on July 9, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2015. The film will be the 10th animated feature out of Hollywood so far this year, and the first original full-length release for Reel FX,...
  6. ^ Murray, Rebecca (March 27, 2013). "Turkeys is Now Free Birds". About.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2013. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  7. ^ "Biggest Box-Office Bombs of 2013". Business Insider. Archived from the original on March 18, 2023. Retrieved July 21, 2022.