When it comes to original animated movies, Netflix has a pretty solid track record. Following in the footsteps of films such as Nimona, The Sea Beast, and The Mitchells vs. the Machines, the upcoming feature Spellbound mashes together a surprising and impressive cast and crew you should recognize from some of your favorite animated films of the last few decades.
Spellbound stars Rachel Zegler (West Side Story) as Ellian, the young daughter of the rulers of Lumbria. One day, a mysterious spell transforms her parents into giant, rampaging monsters, so Ellian has to embark upon a quest to change them back.
The movie was directed by Vicky Jenson, who previously co-directed Shrek and Shark Tale. The last movie that Jenson directed was the 2009 Alexis Bledel rom-com Post Grad, but she’s finally back in charge for this new animated adventure from Skydance and Netflix.
Spellbound features music written by Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast) and lyrics by Glenn Slater (Tangled). It might not be a Disney movie, but it certainly has the same pedigree. And its pedigree extends to the cast, too, which includes Nathan Lane (The Lion King), John Lithgow (Shrek), and Javier Bardem and Nicole Kidman as Ellian’s parents.
“For me, the story is even more universal than the specifics of this family dynamic,” Jenson told Tudum. “For me, it speaks to kids and their parents, to the kind of alienation that can happen as we grow up, and the steps we have to make toward each other to weather it together and come through the other side with better understanding.”
Spellbound starts streaming on Netflix on November 22.
