Freddie Prinze Jr., Chevy Chase, Billy Ray Cyrus Board Animated Christmas Movie ‘Glisten and the Merry Mission’ (EXCLUSIVE)
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Billy Ray Cyrus, Chevy Chase and Freddie Prinze Jr. have boarded the voice cast of animated Christmas movie “Glisten and the Merry Mission.”
Co-produced by Build-A-Bear Entertainment and Foundation Media Partners, the feature also stars Michael Rappaport, Morgan Simianer, Tim Johnson Jr and Reginald VelJohnson.
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The film is led by five-time Grammy-nominated and multi-platinum singer-songwriter Julia Michaels, six-time Grammy-winning singer Dionne Warwick and Trinity Jo-Li Bliss (“Avatar: The Way of Water”). The project is the first animated Christmas feature for Build-A-Bear, and is based on the company’s best-selling Holiday plush collection.
“Glisten and the Merry Mission” follows a young elfling Marzipan (voiced by Bliss) and her mother Cinnameg (Michaels) as Marzipan must believe in the magic of the season as she goes on the adventure of a lifetime to rediscover the enchanted snow deer named Glisten and save Christmas. Their mission is aided by a colorful cadre of reindeer and elves, including the wise Sage Evergreen (Warwick).
Additional voice roles include Chase as Santa, Prinze Jr as Crumble Starsnaps, Santa’s workshop manager, Simianer as Estrellastar the workshop elf, Johnson Jr. as Egard the workshop elf, Rappaport as Grizz, the village grizzly bear with a tough reputation, Cyrus as the reindeer Donner and VelJohnson as Snowy Owl.
Foundation Media Partners and CEO Patrick Hughes will produce the film, which is based on a story by Build-A-Bear President and CEO Sharon Price John, who will executive produce.
The screenplay was written by Temple Mathews (“Mariah’s Once Upon a Christmas”) and John and will be art directed, designed and animated by Ontario-based Big Jump Entertainment with Big Jump’s Chief Creative Officer Cory Morrison directing. Michael Mariano and his frequent collaborator Traci Burwitz will voice direct.
Comedian and actor Chase is best known for the “National Lampoon” movies and “Caddyshack” as well as NBC’s “Community.” He will next be seen in the film “Zombie Town.”
Prinze Jr. has starred in “She’s All That,” “Scooby-Doo” and “I Know What You Did Last Summer.” He was most recently seen in “Christmas With You.”
Morgan Simianer is known for her role in the Emmy-winning Netflix series “Cheer,” while Johnson Jr. starred in “Pacific Rim: Uprising” and “Fist Fight.” He will next be seen as a series regular on Disney’s “Saturdays.”
Rappaport is best known for iconic roles in “True Romance,” “Only Murders in the Building” and “Atypical,” while Cyrus is a singer, songwriter, actor and producer. His acting credits include “Doc” and “Still The King,” as well as the hit Disney Channel series “Hannah Montana.”
VelJohnson is best known for roles in “Die Hard” and “Die Hard 2” and the series “Family Matters,” where he played the beloved patriarch Carl Winslow.
Chase is repped by APA and Link Entertainment. Prinze Jr. is repped by Gersh and Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Simianer is repped by CAA. Johnson Jr. is repped by MMV and Foundation Media Partners. Rappaport is repped by A3 Artists Agency and Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Cyrus is repped by UTA, MicnE Productions and Adkins Entertainment. VelJohnson is repped by David Shapira and Associates and The Beddingfield Company.
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