Clifford the Big Red Dog

Clifford the Big Red Dog is a 2021 live-action animated fantasy comedy film directed by Walt Becker from a screenplay by Blaise Hemingway and the writing team of Jay Scherick and David Ronn, and a story by Justin Malen and Ellen Rapoport, based on the children's book series of the same name by Norman Bridwell. The film stars Jack Whitehall, Darby Camp, Tony Hale, Sienna Guillory, David Alan Grier, Russell Wong, Izaac Wang, Kenan Thompson and John Cleese. The film was screened unannounced on August 26, 2021, during the 2021 CinemaCon event in Los Angeles. It was initially scheduled to premiere at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival in September 2021, to be followed by a theatrical release in the United States on September 17 after being delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic by Paramount Pictures, but was ultimately pulled from the festival and had its release date removed from Paramount's schedule due to the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant. Ultimately, the film was simultaneously released theatrically and digitally on Paramount+ on November 10, 2021, in the United States. It received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $107 million worldwide on a $64 million budget. A sequel is in development. Plot In New York City, Emily Elizabeth Howard, a 12-year-old middle school student who lives with her English mother, Maggie, is regularly bullied by a popular girl at school named Florence, but finds comfort in her only new friend Owen Yu. Maggie leaves her in the care of her van-dwelling and irresponsible uncle Casey before going to Chicago for a business trip. Mr. Bridwell, who runs an animal rescue tent at a park, introduces Emily to a small red puppy whose family had been taken by dogcatchers. He tells her that the puppy will grow based on how much love he receives. Casey rejects the adoption due to dogs not being allowed in the apartment building. When Emily gets home from school, she finds the puppy in her backpack and names him Clifford. Casey allows her to keep Clifford only for one night.