Zack Snyder may be known for violent projects like 300 and Watchmen, but he wants to show he's got a softer side by directing the animated movie, The Guardians Of Ga'Hoole, and he's lined up a top voice cast to help him do it.
The voices in the film will certainly have a rather Australian bent, as Snyder has cast Aussie actors Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham in the film, who will join fellow Down Under thesps Emily Barclay, Abbie Cornish, Emilie de Ravin, Ryan Kwanten and Jay Laga'aia in other parts in the movie. Neill replaces Hugh Jackman, who was previously rumoured to be in the movie.
However, just to add a touch of Brit class to the film, we'll also get to hear Miriam Margolyes, Helen Mirren and Jim Sturgess.
According to THR, the film follows Soren (Sturgess), a young owl enthralled by his father's epic stories of the Guardians of Ga'Hoole, a mythic band of winged warriors who had fought a great battle to save all of owlkind from the evil Pure Ones. Planned as a big budget, 3D CG adventure, the movie is currently in production in Sydney.
It certainly sounds like an unusual animated project, but with a voice cast like that, it's got plenty of acting pedigree. The film is due out December, 2010.