The New Kid

The New Kid is a 2020 American traditionally-animated adventure film directed by John Lasseter, co-directed by Rob Minkoff and Alessandro Carloni, produced by Cal Brunker, Bob Barlen and Bonnie Arnold and written by Bob Persichetti based on a screenplay by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger. Based on the webcomic Penny Arcade by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the film stars the voices of Tex Rammond, Freddie Highmore, Asher Bishop, Jennifer Hale, Ewan McGregor, Laura Bailey, Grey DeLisle, Nancy Cartwright, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Steve Carell, and E. G. Daily.

The New Kid was produced by Buddy Studios, Buddy Animation and Skydance Animation, with Rough Draft Studios providing animation services. The film was released theatrically and for streaming on January 17, 2020, with Paramount Pictures handling theatrical distribution and Buddy+ handling streaming rights. The film received positive reviews and grossed $520 million worldwide against its production budget of $50 million, making it the highest-grossing film of 2020. The film was taken out of the theatrical release window due to the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the film industry.

Plot
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Cast
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Production
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Release
The New Kid was simultaneously released theatrically and for streaming on January 17, 2020. Paramount Pictures handled theatrical distribution, while Buddy+ distributed it for streaming. The film was rated PG by the Motion Picture Association for "rude humor".

Marketing
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Audience viewership
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Critical reception
Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes assigned The New Kid an approval rating of 74% based on reviews from 105 critics, with an average rating of 6.55/10. The site's critical consensus states, "While it does provide great voice acting and excellent animation, and may as well be Buddy Studios' best animated picture, The New Kid lacks some creativity with its likely predictable plot, though keeps its charm with the aspiring music." On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a 62 out of 100 based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore assigned the film an average grade of "A-" on its A+ to F scale.

Box office
The New Kid grossed $178 million in the United States and Canada and $342 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $520 million against its production budget of $50 million. Breaking numerous records, the film became the highest-grossing film of 2020 and the highest-grossing animated film of 2020, both passing Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train. The film was taken off the theatrical schedule in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the film industry.

Trivia

 * This is the first Buddy+ original film to be produced by Buddy Animation after Buddy+ was founded in January 2018.
 * This is the first film based on the comic Penny Arcade.
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