The long-gestating Mowgli cycled through multiple directors before landing in the hands of Andy Serkis. He appeared to be an ideal fit, given his notoriety in the motion-capture realm with portrayals of characters including Gollum in The Lord of the Rings, not to mention serving as second-unit director for Peter Jackson in the Hobbit trilogy. Netflix has now unleashed a new trailer to go along with their announcement of the film’s pre-streaming theatrical release, and it’s safe to say that this menacing and dark take on the Jungle Book tale might not be suitable for the youngest of audiences.
Still, the trailer is a visual treasure to behold, with Serkis stepping in to play Baloo the bear and Rohan Chand playing Mowgli. The A-list cast also includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Matthew Rhys, and Freida Pinto. Here’s the official synopsis:
The story follows the upbringing of the human child Mowgli, raised by a wolf pack in the jungles of India. As he learns the often harsh rules of the jungle, under the tutelage of a bear named Baloo and a panther named Bagheera, Mowgli becomes accepted by the animals of the jungle as one of their own. All but one: the fearsome tiger Shere Khan. But there may be greater dangers lurking in the jungle, as Mowgli comes face to face with his human origins.
Mowgli will arrive in limited theaters on Nov. 29 ahead of its Dec. 7 Netflix streaming release.
