In case you forgot, Paramount is still actively working on bringing Clifford The Big Red Dog to the big screen. The studio acquired the rights to the film back in 2016 and has been trying to crack the script in the three years since. Well, it looks as though the problem as been solved, because the Clifford adaptation is not only going into production next month, but it has also locked down up-and-coming actors for the starring roles.
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On Tuesday morning, The Hollywood Reporter broke the news that Darby Camp (Big Little Lies, The Christmas Chronicles) and comedian Jack Whitehall (Good Omens, Jungle Cruise) have booked the two leading roles for Clifford, The Big Red Dog.
Camp will play a young girl named Emily, the main character in the movie, who is struggling to fit in both at home and at school. That is, until she finds a small red puppy who she believes is destined to become her best friend. What she doesn’t see coming however, is a massive growth spurt on the side of Clifford, as he turns into an enormous canine. This sudden change attracts the attention of a genetics company, forcing Emily and her Uncle Casey (Whitehall) to go on the run with Clifford through New York City.
Walt Becker (Old Dogs, Wild Hogs) is directing the movie for Paramount, with shooting set to begin in New York next month. The screenplay adapting Norman Birdwell’s original book series is being penned by writing duos Jay Scherick and David Ronn and Annie Mumolo and Stan Chervin. Jordan Kerner and Scholastic Entertainment’s Deborah Forte will produce.
Camp has been on the rise for the past two years, breaking out as Reese Witherspoon’s daughter on the popular HBO series Big Little Lies. She’s also set for a role on AMC’s upcoming horror project N0S4A2, and she appeared in two Netflix films last year, Benji and The Christmas Chronicles.
After an established comedy career, Whitehall made a move to the big screen and appeared in Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms late last year. He’s about to appear alongside David Tenant and Michael Sheen in Amazon’s Good Omen next week, as well as Disney’s Jungle Cruise movie in 2020, playing third wheel to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt.
