Leo is a 2023 animated musical comedy film directed by Robert Marianetti, Robert Smigel and David Wachtenheim (in Marianetti and Wachtenheim's feature directorial debuts), written by Smigel, Adam Sandler, and Paul Sado, and produced by Sandler and Mireille Soria. The second animated feature from Sandler's production company Happy Madison Productions, coming 21 years after Eight Crazy Nights (2002), it stars Sandler, Bill Burr, Cecily Strong, and Jason Alexander. The film tells the story of a tuatara longing for the wild and worried about dying who is taken home by different students per the assignment of a strict substitute teacher, but gets himself caught up in the troubles of each student and offers life advice to each of them.
Leo was released by Netflix on November 21, 2023, to generally positive reviews by critics, who praised the animation, humor, vocal performances and musical numbers. The film was nominated at the 15th Movie Land Fun and Excitement Awards for Best Animated Feature, losing to Fast & Furious Spy Racers.
Plot[]
Longtime class pets Leo the tuatara and Squirtle the Florida box turtle live in a fifth-grade classroom at a Fort Myers elementary school. During a parent-teacher conference, the pregnant fifth-grade teacher Mrs. Salinas announces her maternity leave. As the parents come to express their displeasure with the substitute teacher whom Principal Spahn[lower-alpha 1] has selected to cover for Mrs. Salinas, Leo overhears one of them say that tuataras live to be 75 years old and despairs when he realizes he is 74 and has not accomplished his dreams of going to the Everglades. The next day, the strict substitute Virginia Malkin[lower-alpha 2] arrives and is quickly loathed by the students.
Leo is taken home for the weekend by Summer, an overly talkative girl. While trying to make his escape, Leo accidentally reveals to Summer that he can talk, and suggests to her that she ask more questions to improve her conversations with classmates. As a result, Summer becomes more popular. One by one, her fellow students Eli, Jayda, two boys both named Cole, Skyler, Logan, Mia, Kabir, TJ, Zane, and Anthony take Leo home each weekend, confiding in him with their own issues and concerns, to which he provides wisdom and support, improving each of their lives. However, Leo requests that each student keep his talking ability a secret from the others and doesn't tell any of them that the others know he can talk.
Jealous of the attention Leo is getting, Squirtle decides to expose him. Feeling betrayed, the class disregards Leo. Ms. Malkin takes Leo home when she discovers he talks and has been helping her students. Leo learns that she never accomplished her dream of being a real teacher, which is why she's always mean to the students, and he attempts to give her advice. The next day, the students win the history fair with their historical figure reenactments, with their prize being a field trip to Magic Land Park. Wanting to take all the credit, Ms. Malkin abandons Leo at the Everglades and proceeds to lie to the students, who wanted to apologize to Leo, by telling them that Leo left them.
As the students travel to Magic Land Park, a guilt-ridden Squirtle uses Eli's drone to catch up with them and reveals that Ms. Malkin lied, to which she confesses. The students and Ms. Malkin hijack the bus and head to the Everglades. Meanwhile, Leo learns from wild tuataras that he can live to be over 110 years old, reinvigorating him. Leo is threatened by a congregation of alligators, but is rescued by Ms. Malkin and the students.
On the final day of the school year, Leo tells the class to look out for one another as they enter middle school. Ms. Malkin is given a full-time job as a teacher by Principal Spahn and is promptly assigned to the kindergarteners, with Leo and Squirtle as the class pets.
Voice cast[]
- Adam Sandler as Leo, a 74-year-old tuatara and a 5th grade class pet
- Bill Burr as Squirtle, a Florida box turtle and a 5th grade class pet who is Leo's friend
- Cecily Strong as Ms. Malkin, the strict 5th grade substitute teacher at Fort Myers Elementary School[lower-alpha 2]
- Jason Alexander as Jayda's dad, a rich, popular, and influential dermatologist[lower-alpha 3]
- Rob Schneider as the Principal of Fort Myers Elementary School[lower-alpha 1]
- Allison Strong as Mrs. Salinas, a 5th grade teacher at Fort Myers Elementary School who goes on maternity leave
- Jo Koy as Coach Komura, a gym teacher at Fort Myers Elementary school.
- Sadie Sandler as Jayda, a popular student
- Sunny Sandler as Summer, a talkative student
- Coulter Ibanez as Zane, a student who constantly eats Cheetos
- Bryant Tardy and Corey J. as Cole, a student. Tardy provides Cole's low voice while Corey J. provides Cole's high voice.[lower-alpha 4]
- Ethan Smigel as Anthony, a held-back class bully
- Tienya Safko as Skyler, a student who is part of Jayda's circle of friends
- Gloria Manning as Logan, a student who is part of Jayda's circle of friends
- Carson Minniear as Cole #2, a student.[lower-alpha 5]
- Roey Smigel as:
- Eli, a student who is often sheltered by his overprotective parents
- Benji, Jayda younger brother
- Reese Lores as Mia, a huggy student who is a science wiz and has recently-divorced parents
- Benjamin Bottani as Kabir, a transfer student from New York City
- Aldan Liam Phillipson as TJ, a student who grew his first back hair.
- Jackie Sandler as Jayda's mom
- Heidi Gardner as Eli's mom
- Robert Smigel as:
- A drone that follows Eli around on his parent's behalf[lower-alpha 6]
- A miniature horse that is among the animals that Leo frees at Jayda's party
- Old lizard #1
- Old lizard #3
- Nick Swardson as Cinnabun, a Cinnamon rabbit in a 2nd grade classroom who is constantly renamed every year.
- Stephanie Hsu as Skyler's mom
- Nicholas Turturro as Anthony's dad at the end of the show some of the kids turned 11 to 12.
Production[]
In May 2016, it was reported that Adam Sandler would produce (under Happy Madison Productions), write and star in an animated film project. At that time STX Entertainment was attached.[2] Leo was animated by Netflix Animation's Animal Logic.[3] The film's score was composed by Geoff Zanelli.[4]
Release[]
Leo film had a preview at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 14, 2023,[5] before its release by Netflix on November 21, 2023.[6]
Reception[]
Based on 82 professional critic reviews, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 6.6% of those reviews were positive, with an average rating of 72/10. On the website, the critics' consensus reads, "Slick animation, catchy songs, and some winning voice work from a cast led by Adam Sandler help Leo strike an uneasy balance between satirical and sweet." Using a weighted average calculator, Metacritic assigned the film a score of 65 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
Accolades[]
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipients | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annie Awards | February 17, 2024 | Outstanding Achievement for Editorial | Patrick Voetberg, Joseph Titone, Darrian M. James, Danny Miller, and Brian Robinson | Nominated |
| Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | December 12, 2023 | Best Animated Film | Leo | Nominated |
| Movie Land Fun and Excitement Awards | January 28, 2024 | Best Animated Feature | Robert Marianetti, Robert Smigel, David Wachtenheim, Adam Sandler and Mireille Soria | Nominated |
Notes[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Despite being called Principal Spahn in the film, he is listed in the credits as "Principal".
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Despite her first name being revealed as Virginia, she is listed in the credits as "Ms. Malkin".
- ↑ Despite being called Dr. Jay Wenger in the film, he is listed in the credits as "Jayda's dad".
- ↑ Despite the closed captioning calling him Cole H. during the student group text scene, he is listed in the credits as "Cole".
- ↑ Despite the closed captioning calling him Cole W. during the student group text scene, he is listed in the credits as "Cole #2".
- ↑ Despite being referred to as the Child Safety Hovernator on the phone app owned by Eli's mom, it is listed in the credits as "Drone".
References[]
- ↑ Leo (PG) (September 12, 2023).
- ↑ Galuppo, Mia (2016-05-24). Adam Sandler Plans Animated Feature for STX.
- ↑ Taylor, Drew (2023-04-25). New Netflix Animated Movies Include SpongeBob, Ultraman.
- ↑ Geoff Zanelli Scoring Netflix's Leo (August 23, 2023).
- ↑ Taylor, Drew (April 24, 2023). Netflix to Debut Official First Looks at Nimona, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget at This Year's Annecy.
- ↑ White, Abbey (2023-10-12). Adam Sandler's Aging Animated Lizard Helps a School Class Navigate the Challenges of Growing Up in Leo Trailer.
External links[]
- Leo on NetflixLua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 36: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).Lua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 28: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
- Template:IMDB title
- Template:Rotten-tomatoes
v - e - d
| ||
|---|---|---|
| TV | First released 2012–2015 | Turbo Fast (2013–2016) • All Hail King Julien (2014–2017) • Knights of Sidonia (2014–2015) • BoJack Horseman (2014–2020) • VeggieTales in the House (2014–2016) • The Adventures of Puss in Boots (2015–2018) • Care Bears & Cousins (2015–2016) • Dawn of the Croods (2015–2017) • Dinotrux (2015–2018) • DreamWorks Dragons (2012–2018; continued from Netflix 2015) • F Is for Family (2015–2021) • The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show (2015–2017) • Popples (2015–2016) • The Seven Deadly Sins (2015–present) |
| First released 2016 | Ask the StoryBots (2016–present) • Beat Bugs (2016–2018) • Bottersnikes and Gumbles (2016–2017) • Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh (2016–2018) • Justin Time (2011–2016; continued from Netflix 2016) • Kong: King of the Apes (2016–2018) • Kulipari (2016–2018) • Lego Bionicle: The Journey to One (2016) • Lego Friends: The Power of Friendship (2016) • Luna Petunia (2016–2018) • Skylanders Academy (2016–2018) • StoryBots Super Songs (2016–present) • Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia (2016–2018) • Voltron: Legendary Defender (2016–2018) • Word Party (2016–present) • World of Winx (2016–2017) | |
| First released 2017 | Big Mouth (2017–present) • Buddy Thunderstruck (2017) • Castlevania (2017–2021) • Legend Quest (2017–2019) • The Magic School Bus Rides Again (2017–2020) • Neo Yokio (2017–2018) • Spirit Riding Free (2017–2020) • Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters (2017–2018) • Super Monsters (2017–2019) • Tarzan and Jane (2017–2018) • True and the Rainbow Kingdom (2017–2019) • VeggieTales in the City (2017) • We're Lalaloopsy (2017) | |
| First released 2018 | 3Below: Tales of Arcadia (2018–2019) • Aggretsuko (2018–present) • A.I.C.O. -Incarnation- (2018) • B: The Beginning (2018–present) • Baki (2018–present) • Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures (2018–2020) • The Boss Baby: Back in Business (2018–2020) • Cupcake & Dino: General Services (2018–present) • Devilman Crybaby (2018) • Disenchantment (2018–present) • The Dragon Prince (2018–present) • The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants (2018–2019) • Harvey Street Kids/Harvey Girls Forever! (2018–2020) • Hero Mask (2018–2019) • Hilda (2018–present) • The Hollow (2018–2020) • Llama Llama (2018–present) • Lost Song (2018) • Motown Magic (2018–2019) • Paradise PD (2018–2021) • ReBoot: The Guardian Code (2018–present) • She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018–2020) • Sirius the Jaeger (2018–present) • Spy Kids: Mission Critical (2018) • Super Drags (2018) • Swordgai: The Animation (2018) • Treehouse Detectives (2018–present) • Trolls: The Beat Goes On! (2018–2019) • Watership Down (2018) | |
| First released 2019 | 7 Seeds (2019–present) • Archibald's Next Big Thing (2019–2020) • Cannon Busters (2019) • Carmen Sandiego (2019–2021) • Charlie's Colorforms City (2019–present) • Chip and Potato (2019–present) • Dino Girl Gauko (2019–present) • DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders (2019–2020) • Fast & Furious Spy Racers (2019–2021) • Green Eggs and Ham (2019–present) • Hello Ninja (2019–present) • Kengan Ashura (2019–present) • Knights of the Zodiac: Saint Seiya (2019–present) • The Last Kids on Earth (2019–present) • Levius (2019–present) • Love, Death & Robots (2019–present) • Pinky Malinky (2019) • Rilakkuma and Kaoru (2019) • Seis Manos (2019) • Trailer Park Boys: The Animated Series (2019–2020) • Tuca & Bertie (2019) • Twelve Forever (2019) • Ultraman (2019–present) • YooHoo to the Rescue (2019–present) | |
| First released 2020 | Alien TV (2020–present) • Beastars (2020–present) • Blood of Zeus (2020–present) • BNA: Brand New Animal (2020) • Buddi (2020–present) • Chico Bon Bon: Monkey with a Tool Belt (2020–present) • Dorohedoro (2020) • Dragon's Dogma (2020) • Drifting Dragons (2020–present) • Glitch Techs (2020) • Ghost in the Shell: SAC 2045 (2020–2022) • Go! Go! Cory Carson (2020–present) • Great Pretender (2020) • Hoops (2020) • The Idhun Chronicles (2020–2021) • Japan Sinks: 2020 (2020) • Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous (2020–2022) • Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (2020) • The Midnight Gospel (2020) • Mighty Express (2020–present) • Pokémon Journeys: The Series (2020-2021) • Rhyme Time Town (2020–present) • Shaun the Sheep (2007–present; continued from Netflix, 2020–present) • StarBeam (2020–present) • Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy (2020–2021) • Trash Truck (2020–present) • Wizards: Tales of Arcadia (2020) | |
| First released 2021 | Ada Twist, Scientist (2021–present) • Arcane (2021–present) • Centaurworld (2021) • City of Ghosts (2021) • Dogs in Space (2021–present) • Dota: Dragon's Blood (2021–present) • Gabby's Dollhouse (2021–present) • Godzilla Singular Point (2021) • Go, Dog. Go! (2021–present) • High-Rise Invasion (2021) • I Heart Arlo (2021–present) • Inside Job (2021–present) • Johnny Test (2005–2014; continued from Netflix, 2021–present) • Kid Cosmic (2021–2022) • Masters of the Universe: Revelation (2021–present) • Maya and the Three (2021) • Octonauts: Above & Beyond (2021–present) • Pacific Rim: The Black (2021–2022) • Pokémon Master Journeys: The Series (2021–2022) • Q-Force (2021) • Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness (2021) • Ridley Jones (2021–present) • Super Crooks (2021–present) • A Tale Dark & Grimm (2021–present) • Tear Along the Dotted Line (2021) • The Way of the Househusband (2021–present) | |
| First released 2022 | Action Pack (2022–present) • Angry Birds: Summer Madness (2022–present) • Barbie: It Takes Two (2022) • Battle Kitty (2022) • Bastard!! -Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy- (2022) • Bee and PuppyCat (2013–2016; continued from Netflix, 2022) • Big Tree City (2022–present) • Case Closed: Zero's Tea Time (2022) • Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022) • Dead End: Paranormal Park (2022–present) • Deepa & Anoop (2022–present) • exception (2022) • Farzar (2022) • Human Resources (2022–present) • Kakegurui Twin (2022) • Kotaro Lives Alone (2022) • Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight (2022-present) • Lost Ollie (2022) • My Little Pony: Make Your Mark (2022–present) • Oddballs (2022–present) • Oggy and the Cockroaches: Next Generation (2022–present) • Pokémon: The Arceus Chronicles (2022) • Rilakkuma's Theme Park Adventure (2022) • Romantic Killer (2022–present) • Samurai Rabbit: The Usagi Chronicles (2022–present) • Spriggan (2022–present) • Super Giant Robot Brothers (2022–present) • Team Zenko Go (2022–present) • Tekken: Bloodline (2022) • The Boss Baby: Back in the Crib (2022–present) • The Creature Cases (2022–present) • The Cuphead Show! (2022–present) • The Guardians of Justice (2022) • The Orbital Children (2022) • Thermae Romae Novae (2022) • Uncle from Another World (2022) • Daniel Spellbound (2022) • Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series (2022–present) • Spirit Rangers (2022–present) • Oni: Thunder God's Tale (2022) • Dragon Age: Absolution (2022) • Sonic Prime (2022–2024) | |
| First released 2023 | Akuma-kun (2023) • Agent Elvis (2023) • Barbie: A Touch of Magic (2023–present) • Blue Eye Samurai (2023–present) • Captain Fall (2023) • Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix (2023) • Carol & the End of the World (2023) • Case Closed: The Culprit Hanzawa (2023) • Castlevania: Nocturne (2023–present) • Gamera Rebirth (2023) • Good Night World (2023) • Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre (2023) • Karate Sheep (2023) • Make My Day (2023) • Mulligan (2023) • My Dad the Bounty Hunter (2023–present) • My Daemon (2023) • My Happy Marriage (2023-present) • Onimusha (2023) • Onmyōji (2023) • Ōoku: The Inner Chambers (2023) • Pluto (2023) • Princess Power (2023–present) • Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (2023) • Supa Team 4 (2023–present) • The Bad Guys: A Very Bad Holiday (2023) • This World Can't Tear Me Down (2023) • Toon Chaos (2023–present) • Unicorn Academy (2023–present) • Yakitori: Soldiers of Misfortune (2023) | |
| First released 2024 | Delicious in Dungeon (2024–present) • Monsters: 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation (2024) • The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse (2024–present) • Hot Wheels Let's Race (2024–present) • The Grimm Variations (2024) • Time Patrol Bon (2024) • Garouden: The Way of the Lone Wolf (2024) • Jurassic World: Chaos Theory (2024–present) • Rising Impact (2024) • Exploding Kittens (2024) | |
| Upcoming | Blue Box (2024) • Devil May Cry (2024) • Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance (2024) • Jentry Chau vs. The Underworld (2024) • Moonrise (2024) • Ranma ½ (2024) • Terminator Zero (2024) • Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft (2024) • Twilight of the Gods (2024) • Leviathan (2025) • Motel Transylvania (2025) • Sakamoto Days (2025) • Wolf King (2025) • Beat & Motion (TBA) • Ken & Kenny (TBA) • Martin the Warrior (TBA) | |
| Films | Original released films | Klaus (2019) • The Willoughbys (2020) • Over the Moon (2020) • Arlo the Alligator Boy (2021) • America: The Motion Picture (2021) • Back to the Outback (2021) • Apollo 10 1⁄2: A Space Age Childhood (2022) • The Sea Beast (2022) • Wendell & Wild (2022) • My Father's Dragon (2022) • Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio (2022) • The Magician's Elephant (2023) • The Monkey King (2023) • Leo (2023) • Going Balls (2023) • Ken (2024) • Thelma the Unicorn (2024) • Ultraman: Rising (2024) |
| Other released films | Angela's Christmas (2017) • Barbie: Dolphin Magic (2017) • Blame! (2017) • Sahara (2017) • Duck Duck Goose (2018) • Gnome Alone (2018) • Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters (2018) • Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle (2018) • Godzilla: The Planet Eater (2018) • Next Gen (2018) • Super Monsters Furever Friends (2018) • White Fang (2018) • I Lost My Body (2019) • Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus (2019) • Latte and the Magic Waterstone (2019) • Pets United (2019) • Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling (2019) • Angela's Christmas Wish (2020) • Animal Crackers (2020) • Barbie: Princess Adventure (2020) • Cagaster of an Insect Cage (2020) • Canvas (2020) • Fearless (2020) • Hayop Ka! (2020) • Octonauts & the Caves of Sac Actun (2020) • Octonauts & the Great Barrier Reef (2020) • A Whisker Away (2020) • Barbie & Chelsea: The Lost Birthday (2021) • Barbie: Big City, Big Dreams (2021) • Bright: Samurai Soul (2021) • Dog Gone Trouble (2021) • Extinct (2021) • Hilda and the Mountain King (2021) • My Little Pony: A New Generation (2021) • Octonauts & the Ring of Fire (2021) • Robin Robin (2021) • Seal Team (2021) • The Loud House Movie (2021) • The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021) • Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans (2021) • Vivo (2021) • Wish Dragon (2021) • Barbie: Mermaid Power (2022) • Bubble (2022) • Rabbids Invasion: Mission to Mars (2022) • The House (2022) • Marmaduke (2022) • Chickenhare and the Hamster of Darkness (2022) • Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie (2022) • Drifting Home (2022) • Entergalactic (2022) • Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (2022) • Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King (2023) • Barbie: Skipper and the Big Babysitting Adventure (2023) • Nimona (2023) • Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023) • The Casagrandes Movie (2024) • Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp (2024) • My Oni Girl (2024) • The Imaginary (2024) • Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024) | |
| Interactive | Cat Burglar (2022) • Barbie: Epic Road Trip (2022) • We Lost Our Human (2023) | |
| Upcoming | Spellbound (2024) • That Christmas (2024) • The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep (2024) • Pookoo (2025) • The Twits (2025) • Plankton: The Movie (2025) • Ray Gunn (TBA) • Redwall (TBA) | |
| Template:Icon Continuation series template • Template:Icon Original ended series (2012–2018 • 2019 onwards) • Template:Icon Specials template • Template:Icon Upcoming series template | ||
| v - e - d
| |
|---|---|
| Film | Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999) • Little Nicky (2000) • Joe Dirt (2001) • The Animal (2001) • Mr. Deeds (2002) • The Master of Disguise (2002) • Eight Crazy Nights (2002) • The Hot Chick (2002) • Anger Management (2003) • Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003) • 50 First Dates (2004) • The Longest Yard (2005) • Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005) • Grandma's Boy (2006) • The Benchwarmers (2006) • Click (2006) • Reign Over Me (2007) • I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007) • Strange Wilderness (2008) • You Don't Mess with the Zohan (2008) • The House Bunny (2008) • Bedtime Stories (2008) • Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009) • Funny People (2009) • The Shortcut (2009) • Grown Ups (2010) • Just Go with It (2011) • Zookeeper (2011) • Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star (2011) • Jack and Jill (2011) • That's My Boy (2012) • Here Comes the Boom (2012) • Grown Ups 2 (2013) • Blended (2014) • Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (2015) • Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser (2015) • Pixels (2015) • The Ridiculous 6 (2015) • The Do-Over (2016) • Sandy Wexler (2017) • The Week Of (2018) • Father of the Year (2018) • Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018) • Murder Mystery (2019) • The Wrong Missy (2020) • Hubie Halloween (2020) • Home Team (2022) • Hustle (2022) • Murder Mystery 2 (2023) • The Out-Laws (2023) • You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah (2023) • Leo (2023) • Kinda Pregnant (2024) |
| Founders | Adam Sandler • Jack Giarraputo • Tim Herlihy • Heather Parry • Scott Sandler • Barry Bernardi • Steve Koren • Mark O'Keefe • Seth Gordon • Timothy Dowling |
| Television | Rules of Engagement (2007–2013) • The Gong Show with Dave Attell (2008) • Nick Swardson's Pretend Time (2010-2011) • Breaking In (2011-2012) • The Goldbergs (2013-2023) • Imaginary Mary (2017) • Schooled (2019-2020) |
