DreamWorks is bringing another imaginative children’s book to life with Orion and the Dark. The movie revolves around the titular fear-ridden young boy who is invited on a trip around the world with The Dark, an anthropomorphized version of the eponymous lack of illumination in the hopes of conquering some of his fears and embracing life.
Jacob Tremblay and Golden Globe winner Paul Walter Hauser lead the ensemble Orion and the Dark cast alongside Angela Bassett, Colin Hanks, Natasia Demetriou, Golda Rosheuvel, Nat Faxon, Aparna Nancherla, Carla Gugino and Matt Dellapina. Penned by Oscar-winner Charlie Kaufman in his children’s genre debut, the movie is a uniquely self-aware and imaginative exploration of childhood fears and the joys of growing up.
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In honor of the movie’s Netflix premiere, Screen Rant interviewed Tremblay and Hauser to discuss Orion and the Dark, the creation of their characters, how their personalities were infused into the animation, and the former’s thoughts on crossing into live-action with his Harley Quinn and Invincible superhero roles.
Jacob Tremblay & Paul Walter Hauser Talk Orion and the Dark
Screen Rant: I gotta say, I’m very excited to talk about Orion and the Dark. It is such a sweet and imaginative take on childhood fears and overcoming all of them. Jacob, I’ll start with you, and then Paul, what about the project really sparked both of your interests to want to be a part of it?
Jacob Tremblay: I just thought it was really unique, and I saw the concept art for it, and I thought it just looked so beautiful. I was just kind of captivated by the story, I haven’t seen anything like it before. It gives such a friendly face to the dark, and I think the idea is just so creative, it was like, “Yeah, I definitely want to be a part of that.”
Paul Walter Hauser: Yeah, similar answer. I thought anytime there’s a book adaptation, it’s exciting, because there’s a built-in audience that’s really curious about what that would look like. And then, getting to read that script from Charlie Kaufman and look at the concept art, it was very much a movie that I wanted to be a part of in any capacity, and very surreal to get to be the titular characters in the movie. It’s really exciting.
One thing I always find interesting about the animation genre is that sometimes they will animate characters to the actors’ faces, if not their full bodies, while they’re in the vocal booth. Did they do any of that for you guys? Especially, Paul, for you, since The dark is such a very expressive character?
Paul Walter Hauser: That might be a question best answered by the animators, I’m not sure if they tailored any of that. But I know that when we were — at least when I was — recording the voiceover, there weren’t really a whole lot of visuals, it was more interpretive. So yeah, tonight at the premiere, we’re gonna watch the movie again, and it’ll be fun to kind of almost look for that. Because I know that’s been done in the past, like Robin Williams playing the Genie in Aladdin, like they very much tailored it toward him.
Jacob Tremblay: Yeah, I think there are a lot of little characteristics that Orion has that I think maybe they found from me when recording with me, because I was like, “Oh, that definitely seems like me.”
Jacob, I’ll turn to you next, there’s an adult version of your character as much as there is a kid’s version. What was that like working with the director to really find that voice that carries through both ages and keeping the throughline for him?
Jacob Tremblay: Yeah, the thing about Orion is that he’s got a lot of these fears, but he’s still, in a way, super mature for his age, and very smart. So, I think in a way, Orion is kind of almost close to an adult when it comes to his vocabulary, he’s a really smart kid. Talking like that was really really fun.
As much as I’ve been a big fan of yours in Harley Quinn, I also loved your part in Invincible season 2 recently. Given they’re working on a live-action movie, what are your thoughts on making that leap to the live-action superhero world, whether it be Invincible or DC?
Jacob Tremblay: I would love to be able to go into that. That’s just a dream for anyone, I feel especially me, who’s just grown up on those type of movies. Invincible was really fun, I’m a big fan of the show, so to be able to be a part in that is really cool. I always love talking about it with my friends.
About Orion and the Dark
Orion seems a lot like your average elementary school kid – shy, unassuming, harboring a secret crush. But underneath his seemingly normal exterior, Orion is a ball of adolescent anxiety, completely consumed by irrational fears of bees, dogs, the ocean, cell phone waves, murderous gutter clowns, and even falling off of a cliff. But of all his fears, the thing he’s the most afraid of is what he confronts on a nightly basis: the dark. So, when the literal embodiment of his worst fear pays a visit, Dark whisks Orion away on a roller coaster ride around the world to prove there is nothing to be afraid of in the night. As the unlikely pair grows closer, Orion must decide if he can learn to accept the unknown – to stop letting fear control his life and finally embrace the joy of living.
Orion and the Dark
Orion and the Dark is an animated family comedy film by director Sean Charmatz, released in 2024, based on the book by Emma Yarlett. Orion, a boy with a powerful imagination, is thrown into a gauntlet of all his fears when he is dragged along by his greatest fear, the Dark, to discover that his fears of the night may be unfounded.
- Release Date
- February 2, 2024
- Director
- Sean Charmatz
- Cast
- Jacob Tremblay , Paul Walter Hauser , Werner Herzog , Angela Bassett , Colin Hanks , Ike Barinholtz , Natasia Demetriou
- Runtime
- 92 Minutes
- Writers
- Charlie Kaufman , Lloyd Taylor , Emma Yarlett
- Studio(s)
- DreamWorks Animation , Mikros Animation
- Distributor(s)
- Netflix
- Where To Stream
- Netflix
