| Ice Age | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Michael J. Wilson[1] Lori Forte |
| Developed by |
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| Original work | Ice Age (2002) |
| Owner | 20th Century Studios |
| Years | 2002–present |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) |
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| Short film(s) |
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| Animated series | Scrat Tales (2022) |
| Television special(s) |
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| Theatrical presentations | |
| Play(s) | Ice Age Live! A Mammoth Adventure |
| Games | |
| Video game(s) |
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| Audio | |
| Soundtrack(s) | |
Ice Age is an Americanmedia franchise created byMichael J. Wilson[1], based on an idea by Lori Forte. The franchise, centering on a group ofmammals surviving thePleistoceneice age, consists ofcomputer-animated films, short films, TV specials and a series of video games. The first five films were produced byBlue Sky Studios and 20th Century Fox Animation (now20th Century Animation), and distributed by its then-parent company 20th Century Fox (now20th Century Studios). The series features the voices ofRay Romano,John Leguizamo,Denis Leary, andChris Wedge across all films, withQueen Latifah,Seann William Scott,Josh Peck,Simon Pegg,Wanda Sykes,Keke Palmer, andJennifer Lopez joining the main cast in subsequent films. The films center mainly on the adventures of "the Herd," which since the first film consists of at leastwoolly mammoth Manny (Romano),ground sloth Sid (Leguizamo), andSmilodon Diego (Leary). The franchise also features mostly independent plotlines involving a dialogue-free saber-toothed squirrel namedScrat (Wedge), who ends up in misadventures from trying to retrieve and bury his acorns, the latter act creates achain of events that sets up the various adventures of the protagonists.
Five theatrical films have been released in the series:Ice Age in 2002,Ice Age: The Meltdown in 2006,Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs in 2009,Ice Age: Continental Drift in 2012, andIce Age: Collision Course in 2016. As of April 2016, the franchise had generated $6 billion in revenue,[2] making it one of thehighest-grossing media franchises of all time.
Astandalonespin-off film,The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild, was produced byWalt Disney Pictures without the involvement of Blue Sky and released exclusively onDisney+ in January 2022;Simon Pegg was the only returning actor. A sixth film,Ice Age: Boiling Point, is in production for release on February 5, 2027, with most of the main cast reprising their roles from previous installments and withoutBlue Sky’s involvement, instead with 20th Century Animation’s control.
| Film | U.S. release date | Director(s) | Screenwriters | Story by | Producer(s) | Composer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main series | ||||||
| Ice Age | March 15, 2002 (2002-03-15) | Chris Wedge | Michael Berg andMichael J. Wilson andPeter Ackerman | Michael J. Wilson | Lori Forte | David Newman |
| The Meltdown | March 31, 2006 (2006-03-31) | Carlos Saldanha | Peter Gaulke & Gerry Swallow and Jim Hecht | Peter Gaulke & Gerry Swallow | John Powell | |
| Dawn of the Dinosaurs | July 1, 2009 (2009-07-01) | Michael Berg & Peter Ackerman andMike Reiss and Yoni Brenner | Jason Carter Eaton | Lori Forte and John C. Donkin | ||
| Continental Drift | July 13, 2012 (2012-07-13) | Steve Martino andMichael Thurmeier | Michael Berg andJason Fuchs | Michael Berg and Lori Forte | ||
| Collision Course | July 22, 2016 (2016-07-22) | Michael Thurmeier | Michael Wilson and Michael Berg and Yoni Brenner | Aubrey Solomon | Lori Forte | John Debney |
| Boiling Point | February 5, 2027 (2027-02-05)[3] | TBA | Ray DeLaurentis | TBA | TBA | |
| Spin-off | ||||||
| The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild | January 28, 2022 (2022-01-28) | John C. Donkin | Jim Hecht and William Schifrin & Ray DeLaurentis | Jim Hecht | Denise L. Rottina | Batu Sener |
Sid, a goofy but good-natured sloth, is left behind by his family and the herds of mammals journeying to the south. He meets Manny, a cynical and loner woolly mammoth who is travelling to the north, and decides to follow him, much to Manny's disdain. Along the way, the pair come across a woman who has jumped down the nearby waterfall in a desperate bid to protect her child after their camp was attacked by saber-toothed tigers. She silently pushes the infant towards Manny and Sid before disappearing into the water. The two animals decide to search for the father and return the baby to him.
The villainous Soto, leader of the sabers, instructs his second in command, Diego, to bring the baby to him so he can exact his revenge on the child's father, who frequently kills sabers with his tribe for their furs and meat. Diego comes across Manny and Sid and, since they refuse to just give him the child, he pretends to lead them towards the baby's tribe, when really Soto and the rest of the pack wait in an icy mountain range to ambush them, intending on killing Manny and stealing the child. During their journey, the trio bond over the infant and Diego must ultimately decide where his loyalties lie.
Manny, Sid, and Diego are currently living in a large valley surrounded by an enormously high ice wall on all sides. The trio discovers that the ice wall is actually a dam that is barely holding a massive body of water that could flood the valley. A vulture tells them that there is a boat at the other end of the valley that may save them all, but they only have three days to reach it or die. Manny is also having trouble dealing with the fact that he may be the last mammoth left. Along the way, they meet Ellie, a bubbly female mammoth who thinks she is a possum, and her possum brothers Crash and Eddie. As they travel together, Manny learns, with help from Diego and Sid, that he must move on from his past and open his heart to change. During their journey,Scrat, a sabre-toothed squirrel, has his own adventure.
Manny and Ellie are happily married and expecting their first child. Scrat falls in love with fellow squirrel Scratte. Diego is anxious about how things will change after Manny becomes a father and considers leaving the Herd. Sid begins to wish for a family of his own, and steals some dinosaur eggs but after the dino mother comes back for her stolen eggs and takes the talkative sloth home with her, the herd must travel to a colourful underground world to rescue him. During the adventure, Manny and the gang meet Buck, an insane one-eyed weasel who aids them on their quest while hunting down Rudy, a dinosaur to whom Buck lost an eye many years before.
Taking place sixteen years after the events of the third film, Manny's overprotective nature causes a rift between him and his teenage daughter, Peaches. Scrat's pursuit of acorns has world-changing consequences, separating Manny, Sid, Diego and Sid's cantankerous Granny from the rest of their group. Things take a dangerous turn when the gang come into conflict with a rag-tag pirate crew led by the sadistic Captain Gutt. As the friends embark on an epic adventure in their desperate bid to return home, Diego grapples with his conflicting feelings for Gutt's first mate, Shira, and Manny struggles to accept that his daughter may be growing up.
Five years after the events of the fourth film, Manny and Ellie are planning the upcoming wedding between their daughter, Peaches and the clumsy but sweet Julian. Manny is reluctant to let his daughter marry Julian as he thinks he is a bit of a goof but Peaches urges her father to get to know him. Scrat's pursuit of his elusive acorn catapults him outside of Earth aboard a UFO, where he accidentally sets off a series of intergalactic events that transform and threaten the planet. To save themselves from peril, Manny, Sid, Diego, and the rest of the gang leave their home and reunite with the adventurous Buck, who leads them on a crazy cosmic journey to find a way to save the planet.
On the possibility of a sequel, co-director Galen T. Chu stated in June 2016 that there were some ideas for the sixth installment.[4] In July 2016, Bustle noted that the chances of a sixth entry were relatively high but would depend on the box office performance of the fifth film.[5]
In February 2022, Forte discussed the possibility of a sequel while promotingThe Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild, saying, "I think it's a little premature. We hope that people will respond to this, and that will promote us to be able to do another movie. If the audiences want it, we've got plenty of ideas. There's no end to ideas and adventures and characters, so we're ready if they're ready."[6]
In September 2024, while making a guest appearance on theWait Wait…Don't Tell Me! podcast, Leguizamo stated "We’re about to doIce Age 6!", though he did not expand on the comment.[7] On November 8, the film was confirmed to release in 2026 withRay Romano,John Leguizamo,Queen Latifah,Denis Leary, andSimon Pegg returning.[8][9] The following week, on November 15, the film was given the release date of December 18, 2026, taking over the slot of an untitledStar Wars film.[10]
On the possibility of a potential sixth film in the franchise, in June 2016, Galen T. Chu, co-director of the film, stated that there were some ideas for the next installment.[4] In August 2018, CEO of 20th Century FoxStacey Snider announced that a television series based onIce Age and centered around the character Buck is in development.[11][12] In October 2019, after theacquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney, the project was confirmed to be still in development forDisney+.[12] In December 2020, the project was confirmed to have been redeveloped as a film and to be titledIce Age: Adventures of Buck Wild, centering around Buck going on an adventure in the Dinosaur World with Crash and Eddie.[13]
The film released on January 28, 2022, and featuresSimon Pegg reprising his role as the title character. All of the other main characters are voiced by different actors.[13]Batu Sener composed the film's score. Unlike the previousIce Age films released by20th Century Fox and produced by20th Century Fox Animation and Blue Sky, the film was produced byWalt Disney Pictures, with the animation being outsourced toBardel Entertainment.[14][15] Manny, Ellie, Sid, and Diego appear in the film as supporting characters. Various prominent characters were absent from the film, including Scrat, Peaches, Julian, Shira, and Brooke.
In the middle of decorating for the holiday season, Sid accidentally destroys Manny's favourite decorations. Sid, convinced by Manny that he is now on Santa's naughty list, takes off with Crash, Eddie and Peaches for the North Pole to get back on the Santa's good side. When on the North Pole, Sid and his crew accidentally destroy Santa's Workshop. When Manny, Ellie and Diego, worried over Peaches's safety, arrive at the North Pole, they must come together and save Christmas.[22]
The special centers on a harried prehistoric bird mom who entrusts her precious, soon-to-hatch egg to Sid. When she recommends him to her neighbors—a condor mother, Cholly Bear and Gladys Glypto—business booms at his new egg-sitting service.
Dastardly pirate bunny Squint, who is seeking revenge on the herd, steals, camouflages and hides all the eggs. Once again, with Squint's twin brother, Clint, assisting, Manny, Diego and the rest of the gang come to the rescue and take off on a daring mission that turns into the world's first Easter egg hunt.
In May 2021, it was rumored that a short series produced byBlue Sky Studios known asScrat Tales would be coming toDisney+. The series would follow the titularScrat, who discovers that he has a son.[23][better source needed] Footage of the series was laterleaked ontoYouTube, with former Blue Sky animators revealing that the series would be coming to Disney+ in 2022 afterThe Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild. A plush for the character of Scrat's son was unveiled via Just Play Products’ website, with the second image featuring a blue tag containing the logo for Scrat Tales, although the listing was retitled underThe Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild to promote the new film.[24]
The series was released as aDisney+ original series in April 2022.[25] The soundtrack album for the show was released in March 2022 byHollywood Records.[26] Music for the series is composed byBatu Sener and End Titles music is provided byJohn Powell.
List indicators
- A dark gray cell indicates the character was not featured in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- AA indicates a performance through previously recorded material.
| Film | Director(s) | Producer(s) | Executive producer(s) | Writer(s) | Composer | Editor(s) | Production companies | Distributor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ice Age film series | |||||||||
| Ice Age | Chris Wedge co-directed by:Carlos Saldanha | Lori Forte | Chris Meledandri | screenplay:Michael Berg,Michael J. Wilson andPeter Ackerman story: Michael J. Wilson | David Newman | John Carnochan | 20th Century Fox Animation Blue Sky Studios | 20th Century Fox | |
| Ice Age: The Meltdown | Carlos Saldanha | Chris Meledandri & Chris Wedge | screenplay: Peter Gaulke, Gerry Swallow and Jim Hecht story: Peter Gaulke & Gerry Swallow | John Powell | Harry Hitner | ||||
| Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | Carlos Saldanha co-directed by:Mike Thurmeier | Lori Forte & John C. Donkin | Chris Wedge | screenplay: Michael Berg, Peter Ackerman,Mike Reiss and Yoni Brenner story: Jason Carter Eaton | |||||
| Ice Age: Continental Drift | Steve Martino & Mike Thurmeier | Chris Wedge[27] & Carlos Saldanha | screenplay: Michael Berg &Jason Fuchs story: Michael Berg & Lori Forte | James M. Palumbo &David Ian Salter | |||||
| Ice Age: Collision Course | Mike Thurmeier co-directed by: Galen T. Chu | Lori Forte | screenplay: Michael J. Wilson, Michael Berg and Yoni Brenner story: Aubrey Solomon | John Debney | James M. Palumbo | ||||
| Ice Age: Boiling Point | TBA | screenplay: Ray DeLaurentis | TBA | 20th Century Animation | 20th Century Studios | ||||
| Spin-off film aboutBuck Wild | |||||||||
| The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild | John C. Donkin co-directed by: Marshall Fels Elliott | Denise L. Rottina | Lori Forte | screenplay: Jim Hecht, William Schifrin and Ray DeLaurentis story: Jim Hecht | Batu Sener | Braden Oberson | Walt Disney Pictures 20th Century Animation | Disney+ | |
All five films, produced on a total budget of $429 million, have grossed over $3.2 billion worldwide, makingIce Age the18th highest-grossing franchise of all time, andthe third highest-grossing animated franchise worldwide behindDespicable Me andShrek.[28] The first four films were the highest-grossing animated films in each year they were released, and among the eight highest-grossing films in their respective release years.[29][30][31][32] The fifth film was considered a commercial disappointment and is the lowest-grossing film in both the franchise and Blue Sky's filmography, when adjusted for inflation.[33][34]
| Film | Release date | Box office gross | Budget | Ref(s) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | ||||
| Ice Age | March 15, 2002 | $176,387,405 | $206,869,731 | $383,257,136 | $59 million | [35] |
| Ice Age: The Meltdown | March 31, 2006 | $195,330,621 | $465,610,159 | $660,940,780 | $80 million | [36] |
| Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | July 1, 2009 | $196,573,705 | $690,113,112 | $886,686,817 | $90 million | [37] |
| Ice Age: Continental Drift | July 13, 2012 | $161,321,843 | $715,922,939 | $877,244,782 | $95 million | [38] |
| Ice Age: Collision Course | July 22, 2016 | $64,063,008 | $344,516,030 | $408,579,038 | $105 million | [39] |
| Total | $793,676,582 | $2,423,031,971 | $3,216,708,553 | $429 million | [40][41] | |
While the first film received generally positive reviews, the series has received some criticism for making no attempt to be scientifically accurate[42][43][44] and has experienced a steadily declining critical reception with each succeeding film.
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore[45] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mainline films | |||||||||
| Ice Age | 77% (168 reviews)[46] | 60 (31 reviews)[47] | A | ||||||
| Ice Age: The Meltdown | 57% (144 reviews)[48] | 58 (29 reviews)[49] | |||||||
| Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | 46% (161 reviews)[50] | 50 (25 reviews)[51] | A- | ||||||
| Ice Age: Continental Drift | 38% (133 reviews)[52] | 49 (29 reviews)[53] | A- | ||||||
| Ice Age: Collision Course | 18% (118 reviews)[54] | 34 (27 reviews)[55] | B+ | ||||||
| Spin-off | |||||||||
| The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild | 19% (37 reviews)[56] | 30 (5 reviews)[57] | — | ||||||
Ice Age Live! A Mammoth Adventure is a live arenaice show that combines ice skating, aerial arts, puppetry and film, and tells a new story based on the first threeIce Age films.[65] The plot begins with baby mammoth Peaches being kidnapped by an evil hawk-like creature called Shadow. Her father Manny sets off to rescue Peaches, accompanied by Sid and Diego. Their mission is successful, but on the way home they encounter avalanches and rockfalls, diverting them into a fantasy underground kingdom.[66]
It is being produced by Stage Entertainment Touring Productions, and directed by Guy Caron and Michael Curry.[67] The music and lyrics were written by Ella Louise Allaire and Martin Lord Ferguson.[67] With the preview shows from October 19 to 21, 2012, inCardiff, and from October 25 to 28, 2012, inNottingham,A Mammoth Adventure officially premiered on November 2, 2012,[67] during its three-day tour from November 1 to 3 atWembley Arena in London.[68] It continued in Germany in November 2012,[69] with a plan to visit more than 30 countries in its five-year worldwide tour.[65] In August 2016,Ice Age Live! A Mammoth Adventure concluded its world tour and was replaced in North America byIce Age On Ice.[70]
Ice Age inspired rides and attractions first opened atMovie Park Germany. In 2012, a new Ice Age 4D experience opened at Alton Towers. In 2014, new Ice Age rides opened at Dufan Ancol,Jakarta that introduced 2 Ice Age themed rides named Ice Age: Sid's Arctic Tours and Kontiki. In 2021,Ice Age attractions are featured at the first20th Century Fox theme park, calledGenting SkyWorlds,[71] which opened in 2021 as part of Malaysia-basedResorts World Genting.[72]
Jakks Pacific produced toys based on the property.[73]
The official Ice Age app is here! Help your favorite characters in this heroic challenge, and get ready for fun and surprises along the way!
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