Pitch Perfect
Pitch Perfect logo
Created by	Kay Cannon
Original work	Pitch Perfect (2012)
Years	2012–present
Based on	Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate a Cappella Glory by Mickey Rapkin
Films and television
Film(s)	Pitch Perfect (2012) Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) Pitch Perfect 3 (2017)
Television series	Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin (2022)
Audio
Soundtrack(s)	Pitch Perfect Pitch Perfect 2 Pitch Perfect 3 Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin

Pitch Perfect is an Americanmusicalcomedymedia franchise created byKay Cannon, based on the non-fiction bookPitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate a Cappella Glory by Mickey Rapkin.Jason Moore directedthe first film,Elizabeth Banks directedthe second, andTrish Sie directedthe third.Paul Brooks, Max Handelman, and Banks produced the films. The film series features anensemble cast, includingAnna Kendrick,Rebel Wilson,Anna Camp,Brittany Snow,Skylar Astin,Adam DeVine,Ben Platt,Alexis Knapp,Hana Mae Lee,Ester Dean,Hailee Steinfeld,Chrissie Fit,John Michael Higgins, and Banks; while the television series stars DeVine. The series is distributed byUniversal Pictures.

The franchise is about a femalea cappella group, called The Barden Bellas, that takes part in theInternational Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) in order to become the best collegiatea cappella group in the world and sing in front of thepresident of the United States.

The first film was asleeper hit. It received positive reviews and was financially successful, grossing $115 million against a $17 million budget. A sequel was made and released in 2015, to greater financial success, grossing $287 million against a $29 million budget. The series has since gained acult following,^{[citation needed]} grossing $565 million worldwide, and the second film is the highest grossing musical comedy film of all time, beatingSchool of Rock's record.

Beca Mitchell (Anna Kendrick), a rebellious and unwilling freshman at Barden University, joins a disgraced all-female a cappella group, The Barden Bellas, directed by uptight senior student Aubrey Posen (Anna Camp). The film follows the unlikely new formation of The Barden Bellas which has to struggle to win at the collegiate a cappella competition.

Set three years after the first film, The Bellas are the leading a cappella group with Beca as the leader until Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) accidentally rips her pants during a performance, effectively suspending the group. They could be reinstated if they win an international a cappella competition, where no American team has ever won. With new members, tough competition, and doubts everywhere from almost everyone, they try to regain their glory, only to find it harder than it looks with their focus being split up and losing their harmony along the way.

Two years after the second film, the now graduated Bellas find themselves split apart and struggling with their real life jobs. However, after a brief reunion, Aubrey comes up with an idea to perform for the USO tour, which will reunite them for a series of shows. The Bellas go overseas for the USO where they find out that they are actually competing with other bands on tour to be the opening act forDJ Khaled.

In September 2021, it was announced that a television series based on the film series had been ordered atPeacock for a 2022 release, withAdam DeVine reprising his role as Bumper Allen. It will be written byMegan Amram, who will also serve as executive producer and showrunner andElizabeth Banks serve as executive producer.^[1] In March 2022,Sarah Hyland,Jameela Jamil, andLera Abova were announced to be joining the cast alongsideFlula Borg, who is reprising his role as Piëter Krämer from the second film.^[2]

The film is based on Mickey Rapkin's non-fiction bookPitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate a Cappella Glory. Rapkin, senior editor atGQ magazine, spent a season covering competitive collegiate a cappella. He followed the Tufts University Beelzebubs, the University of Oregon Divisi (the loose inspiration for the Bellas), and the University of Virginia Hullabahoos, who have a cameo in the film. Rapkin's book mainly covers the singing, groupies, partying and rivalries. Two members of the a cappella community,Deke Sharon, who founded the International Championship of College A Cappella, and Ed Boyer, both in Rapkin's book, were brought on board to arrange songs, produce vocals and act as on-site music directors, where they ran a month-long "a cappella boot camp".^[3] The film was shot throughout campus and inside buildings at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Elizabeth Banks is a co-producer and a co-star in the film.

The casting department included Justin Coulter, Rich Delia, Allison Estrin, and Michael Roth. One of the producers, Paul Brooks, stated "First and foremost, we were looking for actors who had comedic instincts and thought we'd get lucky with terrific actors who happened to be funny and can actually dance and maybe sing. It turns out we did get lucky with our cast!" According to producer Elizabeth Banks, "The character Beca required someone who was grounded, who has a strong point of view on the world, who is funny and empathetic and someone who we can all relate to and root for." Of Kendrick she said, "Anna is all those things, and there was no other choice." Fellow producer Brooks said "I saw Anna inUp in the Air and thought it was the most exquisite, elegant, balanced, sublime performance. Anna was our first choice for the role of Beca."^[4]

When casting the character of Jesse, Max Handelman said "We were looking for a young John Cusack-type guy. We needed to find someone who was kind of awkward but not a geek, but not so cool that you're not rooting for him." Skylar Astin was chosen for the role. Of Astin's audition, Banks said the chemistry between Skylar and Anna when they read together prior to shooting was "clear and they were able to riff off each other."^[4]

Rebel Wilson was recognized for her performance in the comedy filmBridesmaids upon auditioning for the role of Fat Amy, which she won instantly. Moore recalled Wilson singing Lady Gaga's "The Edge of Glory" while beating "on her chest with her fists." He said, "I didn't even hear the end of the song because I was laughing so hard. There's this beautiful openness to the way Rebel approaches everything, and that's what works great for the character. She's fearless."^[4] Adam DeVine was personally chosen by Banks and Handelman for the role of Bumper after they saw him on the television seriesWorkaholics. Banks said that she and her husband are "bigWorkaholics fans," and after watching one night during the film's casting, they saw DeVine and "immediately thought" he would be a good choice for Bumper. He initially declined because he was not a singer. DeVine eventually surprised Banks and Handelman with his vocal skills.^[4] Anna Camp was chosen for the role of Aubrey. Producer Max Handelman said, "Elizabeth and I were huge fans of Anna's fromTrue Blood. Aubrey is set up as the antagonist for Beca, and Beca's already a bit hard-edged, so it was so important to find an actress who could play Aubrey as someone who could marshal the crazy but also was sympathetic."^[4]Kelley Jakle was brought in as a "ringer" due to her past experience as a two-time ICCA champion with theSoCal VoCals and had also appeared on two seasons ofThe Sing-Off.^[5]

Note: A light grey cell indicates a character who did not appear in that film or the television series.

IMDb links forPitch Perfect films

• Pitch Perfect atIMDb
• Pitch Perfect 2 atIMDb
• Pitch Perfect 3 atIMDb

• Pitch Perfect (franchise)
• 2010s musical comedy films
• American musical comedy films
• Universal Pictures franchises
• Film series introduced in 2012
• Films adapted into television shows
• Jukebox musical films

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• Articles with unsourced statements from April 2025