Principal photography for Paul King’s sequel currently underway with Gleeson cast as Knuckles McGinty, who becomes an ally for Paddington, while Hugh Grant (Notting Hill) is set to play villain Phoenix Buchanan.
David Heyman (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them) continues to produce for Studio Canal, with Paul King also co-writing the script with Simon Farnaby (Mindhorn).
Grant and Gleeson join the core cast from the first film which include Ben Whishaw (The Danish Girl) as the voice of titular character Paddington, ‘Downton Abbey’ star Hugh Bonneville, ‘Maudie’ actress Sally Hawkins, Jim Broadbent (Bridget Jones’ Baby), Imelda Staunton (Maleficent) and Julie Walters (Brooklyn).
Gleeson’s recent work also sees him star alongside Michael Fassbender (Assassin’s Creed) in the gritty ‘Trespass Against Us’, which is awaiting release in Irish cinemas, while similar work for the ‘Calvary’ actor includes his role in the Oscar-nominated ‘Song of the Sea’.
Paul King, Director:
“It has been a complete joy to return to the world of Paddington. It was such a delight to see his first big-screen adventure embraced by audiences around the world, and I couldn’t be more excited about Hugh and Brendan joining the cast to bring his next outing to life. Together, I hope we can make a film worthy of this most exceptional of bears.”
David Heyman, Producer:
“I am thrilled to be back in the warm embrace of Paddington Bear, again under the inspired direction of Paul King. And I’m delighted to welcome Hugh and Brendan to our exceptional cast.”
But Paddington went on to prove box office gold for Studiocanal, grossing $270m at the worldwide box office to become the company’s highest-earning title in its history and the highest-grossing family film of all time released by a non-US studio.
‘Paddington 2’ is expected to release in Irish cinemas in November of 2017.