Animation is a playground for creativity

Sam Rockwell, Danielle Brooks, and Natasha Lyonne discuss the challenge of voicing animated characters in the comedy sequel The Bad Guys 2. By LYNN RUSK

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WHEN the animated film The Bad Guys debuted in 2022, it set out to subvert the heist genre with a crew of animal criminals, voiced by an all-star cast.

Three years later, its sequel, The Bad Guys 2, arrives with a thrilling new chapter, this time introducing an additional gang of criminals.

Directed by French animator Pierre Perifel, the sequel follows the now-reformed Bad Guys as they try their best to be good. But their plans are derailed when they're pulled into a high-stakes, globetrotting heist, masterminded by a mysterious new crew: the Bad Girls.

The Bad Guys 2 features returning cast members Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, and Awkwafina, reprising their roles as Mr Wolf, Mr Snake, Mr Shark, Mr Piranha, and Ms Tarantula.

They're joined by a new trio of comedic powerhouses: Danielle Brooks, Natasha Lyonne, and Maria Bakalova, who lend their voices to the formidable Bad Girls.

Sam, 56, who won an Oscar for his role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, sees his character, Mr Wolf, face the daunting task of showing the world he's changed for the better.

"Wolf is fun because he's still figuring himself out," says Sam. "On the surface, he is cool and quick-thinking, but underneath, there's real conflict. In the first film, he started questioning who he was; in this one, he is trying to change, but the world will not let him forget who he used to be."

As rejection after rejection chips away at Wolf's optimism, he starts to question everything.

"What does 'going good' really mean if no one believes you've changed?" he asks.

"His old life of crime, while flawed, at least made sense. The new one is full of uncertainty."