| PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe | |
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| Information | |
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• Paramount Pictures |
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The PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe, also referred to as the Brunkerverse and the PAW Universe, is a series centered on computer-animated action-adventure comedy films and television series developed by WindowsMyers2018 among several fanfic writers, based on PAW Patrol created by Keith Chapman. The films are subtitled Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie, Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, and Rubble & Crew: The Movie. They were followed by a television series, PAW Patrol: Rescue Pups. The series is distributed by Paramount+ in production with Nickelodeon Movies and Spin Master Entertainment.
Development[]
Early attempts and cancellation (2014-2016)[]
In 2014, WindowsMyers2018 developed a PAW Patrol film adaptation. He also expressed interest in Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, and Columbia Pictures distributing the film. Myers revealed that Owen Mason, Tristan Samuel, Stuart Ralston, Kallan Holley, Alex Thorne, Gage Munroe, Devan Cohen, Christian Distefano, and Deann Degruijter would have reprised their roles as Ryder, Chase, Rocky, Skye, Zuma, Marshall, Rubble, Alex Porter, and Mayor Goodway. The film's storyline was significantly inspired by the show's first season.
In 2016, "Air Pups" was released, as part of the third season of PAW Patrol. Myers said elements of "Air Pups" would have been utilized in a newly written script for the PAW Patrol film adaptation. Shortly after, the project was cancelled, ending up in a production hiatus for four years.
Revival and expanded franchise (2020-2022)[]
On October 3, 2020, Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie was revived and re-envisioned to lay the groundwork for future PAW Patrol installments. It was also revealed that Jim Gaffigan, who previously voiced a bulldog incarnation of himself in a 2016 promo for The Jim Gaffigan Show, would voice a new character and act as an executive producer on the film. Shortly after, Maya Rudolph was reported to voice Mayor Goodway, replacing Deann Degruijter and Kim Roberts from the television series, respectively. Myers said Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie would contain references to other characters in the show's sub-series—including Mission PAW and Mighty Pups—so it could launch a shared universe.
In November 2021, Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie was revealed to be in development following the theatrical cut's announcement by Spin Master Entertainment. Myers confirmed that new attires would be introduced for the pups, while also revealing that The Mighty Movie would have an equal focus on mythical and incarnated original characters, taking inspiration from his favorite superhero films, including Super Buddies (2013), Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), Shazam! (2019), and Black Adam (2022).
In March 2022, a spin-off series focusing on Liberty was reported to be in the works. In October 2022, an adapted crossover bringing together the characters of PAW Patrol and Bob the Builder was announced, entitled Pups Meet Bob the Builder. Keith Chapman, who created both franchises, was hired to develop, also voicing a fictionalized version of himself.
PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe (2023-present)[]
In January 2023, Dwayne Johnson was announced to voice Anubis and act as a producer on The Mighty Movie. Johnson stated regarding the crew's determination to listen to the fans: "That is the whole point of this, what I really meant by is listening to the fans. Listening to the fans. And doing our best to give the fans what they want. You'll always know that we're listening." At that point, Myers revealed that Maya Rudolph would not return to voice Mayor Goodway from Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie; however, he also said that Rudolph would be recast as a new character for future installments—Athena, a Rottweiler and Chase's adoptive aunt. On January 27, 2023, Myers confirmed that a spin-off film focusing on the Cat Pack was in development, entitled Cat Pack: The Movie. The following day, he stated that a PAW Patrol shared universe was mapped out.
On February 3, 2023, Myers unveiled multiple projects that were in development and scheduled to release between multiple formats including standard television and streaming. The lineup included the films Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie, Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, Rubble & Crew: Heroes of Builder Cove, Aqua Pups: Throne of Puplantis, and Cal Brunker's All Paws on Deck, as well as the television series Liberty and Reign of the Super-Pups. Though Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie was considered the start of the franchise, the PAW Patrol movie episodes Mighty Pups (2018), Ready Race Rescue (2019), and Jet to the Rescue (2020) were released prior to it and were considered prologues for the film. The PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe will consist of a centralized universe containing animated projects. Projects that are not a part of the shared universe will be branded as "PAW Patrol Outerworlds". On February 10, 2023, Myers announced that Nova: First Flight was prepended to the franchise's lineup, adding that it takes place in a "cosmic environment" with locations including the PAW Patrol Space Station. On February 13, 2023, Myers announced a television series named Dog Authority, noting that Kim Kardashian (Delores) was expected to star across mediums, including films and television shows in animation. In early February 2023, Chapman said that he and Spin Master Entertainment contrived their continuing plan for the franchise, which spanned the following 10 years or more. There was potential for Christian Convery and Mckenna Grace to replace Iain Armitage and Lilly Bartlam as Chase and Skye in Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie-onwards, and it was revealed by Myers that former PAW Patrol voice actors would return to portray new characters: Kallan Holley (Skye) as Daisy, Deann Degruijter (Mayor Goodway) as Ellie, Alex Thorne (Zuma) as Romeo, and CJ Dubé (Jeremy the Genie) as Jeremy. Holley and Degruijter were set to have cameo appearances in The Mighty Movie.
On April 1, 2023, Myers unveiled a multi-animator project for Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie to be created and a campaign to increase the #ReleaseTheBrunkerCut movement, with a goal to reach over 10,000 posts online. He added that the show's cast members supported and viewed his visual arts of drawings and animation for the film.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] Mighty Pups, Ready Race Rescue, Jet to the Rescue, and Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie were scheduled to screen in honoring Cal Brunker, Keith Chapman, Charles E. Bastien, and the crew of Spin Master for expanding the PAW Patrol community of helping others in need.
In June 2023, The Mighty Movie was re-titled to Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie – Part One. This film was originally assumed to be released as one; however, due to its long runtime and ensemble cast of characters, The Mighty Movie was later divided into two parts. Shortly after, Myers started an online petition for the release of Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie on Change.org.[12][13]
In November 2023, Dino Rescue: The Movie and Air Pups: The Movie were added as installments of the franchise's lineup of films.
Creative overhaul and production shifts (2024)[]
In January 2024, WindowsMyers2018 stated that the franchise would be reducing the creation of content, in part to improve the quality of his fanfics from writing through post-production, admitting that unnecessary stories and characters would dilute focus and attention. He clarified that the franchise would now release films based on each sub-series of the television series with the hope of exceeding expectations for audiences.[14]
In February 2024, Cat Pack: The Mighty Movie and PAW Patrol: The Ultimate Movie were reportedly dropped from the group of the franchise's films and moved to the PAW Patrol Outerworlds label. In May 2024, a film based on the Rocky's Garage mini-series was reported to have been written.
In September 2024, WindowsMyers2018 announced that PAW Patrol: The Doomsday Movie and PAW Patrol: The Multiverse Movie would conclude the franchise.[15][16] PAW Patrol: Rescue Pups was ordered in October 2024, with the series expanding origins for major characters, including the PAW Patrol pups, Ryder, and others.
Films[]
Mighty Pups[]
The PAW Patrol are given superpowers after a meteor lands in Adventure Bay. When Mayor Humdinger and his nephew trap Ryder and steal the meteor to take over the city, the pups use their new powers to save the day.
Myers confirmed that Mighty Pups, alongside Ready Race Rescue and Jet to the Rescue, would set the stage for Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie.
Ready Race Rescue[]
When The Whoosh is unable to drive in the Adventure Bay 500, he calls on Marshall to race in his place.
Myers confirmed that Ready Race Rescue, alongside Mighty Pups and Jet to the Rescue, would set the stage for Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie.
Jet to the Rescue[]
The super pups defend Barkingburg from the Duke of Flappington.
Myers confirmed that Jet to the Rescue, alongside Mighty Pups and Ready Race Rescue, would set the stage for Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie.
Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie[]
The PAW Patrol try to save Adventure City from the recently-elected Mayor Humdinger from turning the bustling metropolis into a state of chaos for the Duke of Flappington.
The divisive reaction to the theatrical cut of PAW Patrol: The Movie (2021) led to fans of the show expressing interest in a director's cut of PAW Patrol: The Movie, which is often referred to as the "Brunker Cut". Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies moved ahead with the project in October 2020; the film was announced to be released as Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie as a Paramount+ Original Film. The film was distributed by Paramount Pictures, and produced by Nickelodeon Movies, Columbia Pictures, and Spin Master Entertainment, with animation provided by Guru Studio and Mikros Image. An original workprint of Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie was released on Paramount+ in the United States on November 3, 2021, while a finalized edition of the project was expected to be released between 2022 and 2023. The film is dedicated to PAW Patrol director Charles E. Bastien, who died in 2023 after a battle with cancer.
Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie is set after the events of Mighty Pups, Ready Race Rescue, and Jet to the Rescue. Characters in the film who did not appear in the theatrical version include Sweetie (reprised by Anya Cooke), the Princess of Barkingburg (reprised by Caoimhe Judd), Artemis (voiced by Gabrielle Union), Apollo (voiced by Rob Lowe), Everest (reprised by Berkley Silverman), Tracker (reprised by Mateo Carnovale), Bruce (voiced by Ryan Reynolds), Richard (voiced by Nathan Fillion), Guillermo (voiced by Martin Short), Rusty (voiced by Seth Rogen), Al (reprised by Nylan Parthipan), and Digger (voiced by Jim Gaffigan, who also acts as an executive producer), with Isabella Leo and Eamon Hanson voicing Ella and Tuck in the film's epilogue. Robert Downey Jr., Olivia Olson, Thomas Middleditch, Bobby Moynihan, Will Smith, Emily Blunt, Tymika Tafari, and Gage Munroe have voice cameo appearances as adult equivalents of Chase, Skye, Rocky, Rubble, Zuma, Sweetie, Liberty, and Marshall.
Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie[]
Chase and Skye recruit the PAW Patrol and the Olympians to save Adventure City from Victoria Vance, Mayor Humdinger, and Cronus before the supervillains try to steal the pups' crystals from a magical meteor.
Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie is set after the events of Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie and the first season of PAW Patrol: Rescue Pups. Mckenna Grace and Christian Convery replace Lilly Bartlam and Iain Armitage as Skye and Chase. The Mighty Movie also introduces Shazam (voiced by Djimon Hounsou, reprising his role from the DC Extended Universe) and Loki (voiced by Tom Hiddleston, reprising his role from the Marvel Cinematic Universe).
Rubble & Crew: The Movie[]
In February 2023, a film adaptation of Rubble & Crew, revealed to be Heroes of Builder Cove, was announced. The official title of Rubble & Crew: The Movie was announced in March 2024. Jim Gaffigan reprises his role as Digger and Greg Proops voices Robert.
PAW Patrol: The Leopard's Journey[]
A Scottish Fold cat named Nemera with her adoptive brother Wild must go on journey to find the legendary Leopard Crystal, which can stop the mysterious dark corruption.
On July 20, 2024, another Cat Pack spin-off was confirmed to be in development, entitled PAW Patrol: The Leopard's Journey, and Nemera was confirmed to be casted by Millie Davis.
PAW Patrol: The Doomsday Movie[]
In September 2024, PAW Patrol: The Doomsday Movie was announced, with the Russo brothers attached to direct the film.
PAW Patrol: The Multiverse Movie[]
PAW Patrol: The Multiverse Movie is set after the events of PAW Patrol: Rescue Pups season 3. Tom Hiddleston reprises his voice role as Loki from Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie. PAW Patrol: The Multiverse Movie features Anna Claire Bartlam reprising her voice role as Codi Gizmody from All Paws on Deck.
In February 2023, the film was confirmed to be in development. PAW Patrol: The Multiverse Movie is intended to serve as the final installment of the PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe.
Television series[]
PAW Patrol: Rescue Pups[]
Adventure Bay's dogs unite to form the Rescue Pups. The team aims to save lives around Adventure Bay from both natural and man-made disasters.
Expanded setting[]
Connections to PAW Patrol[]
Specific projects of the PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe will loosely acknowledge the continuity of the television series. In these cases, Myers stated that such episodes will be connected to place events of the PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe; Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie continues from events established by the movie episodes Mighty Pups, Ready Race Rescue (2019), and Jet to the Rescue (2020).
PAW Patrol Outerworlds[]
Upon announcing the new slate for the PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe, Myers said that PAW Patrol media not set in the franchise would henceforth be labeled as "PAW Patrol Outerworlds" properties. The "PAW Patrol Outerworlds" lineup was initially named "PAW Patrol Elseworlds" in referencing the DC Elseworlds of the DC Comics continuity.
The following PAW Patrol media have been declared to be part of the "PAW Patrol Outerworlds" lineup:
- Cat Pack: The Mighty Movie
- PAW Patrol: The Ultimate Movie
- Mighty Pups, Super Paws/Charged Up (2019-2020, 2022):
- Pups Stop a Mighty Eel
- Pups Meet the Mighty Twins
- Pups Save a Giant Chicken
- When Super Kitties Attack
- Pups Stop Harold's Deep Freeze
- Pups Save a Mega Mayor
- Pups and the Big Twin Trick
- Pups vs. Three Super Baddies
- Pups Stop a Humdinger Horde
- Pups vs. the Copycat
- Pups Stop a Big Bad Bot
- Pups Save a Mighty Lighthouse
- Pups vs. the Dome
- Dino Rescue (2020, 2022):
- Pups Save a T-Rex Tyke
- Pups and the Lost Dino Eggs
- Pups Save a Pterodactyl
- Pups Save a Hum-Dino
- Pups and the Big Rumble
- Pups Save the Triceratops Tag-Alongs
- Pups Save a Sore Dino
- Moto Pups (2021):
- Pups vs. the Ruff-Ruff Pack
- Pups Save a Sneezy Chase
- Pups Save the Donuts
- Pups Save a Moto Mayor
- Rescue at Twisty Top Mesa
- Pups Save the Kitties
- Rescue Knights (2021-2022):
- Quest for the Dragon's Tooth
- Pups Save a Dozing Dragon
- Pups Break the Ice
- Pups Save the Baby Dragons
- Pups Save Excalibark
- Pups Save a Tournament
- PAW Patrol Live!: Race to the Rescue (2016)
- PAW Patrol Live!: At Home (2021)
- PAW Patrol Live!: Heroes Unite (2023)
Characters[]
- Main article: List of PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe characters
Casting[]
Jim Gaffigan and Maya Rudolph were cast in early October 2020 as Digger and Mayor Goodway in Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie. Gaffigan and Rudolph were the first cast members to be cast in the film, even though Rudolph didn't star in the television series. Gaffigan was previously featured as an animated PAW Patrol pup of himself in a 30-second animated short used to promote The Jim Gaffigan Show's second season. On the casting of Rudolph, WindowsMyers2018 initially felt debatable due to his unawareness of Kim Roberts voicing the character since 2020, but found Rudolph and Roberts likable to make their chemistry between Mayor Goodway and Rachel realistic. He further stated that Rudolph's performance was to impersonate Deann Degruijter, who voiced Mayor Goodway from 2013 to 2020.
Several other actors including Iain Armitage as Chase, Marsai Martin as Liberty, Ron Pardo as Mayor Humdinger, Yara Shahidi as Kendra Wilson, Dax Shepard as Ruben, Randall Park as Butch, Kim Kardashian as Delores, Anya Cooke as Sweetie, Berkley Silverman as Everest, Seth Rogen as Rusty, Ryan Reynolds as Bruce, Martin Short as Guillermo, Jimmy Kimmel as Marty Muckraker, Tyler Perry as Gus, Will Brisbin as Ryder, and Caoimhe Judd as the Princess of Barkingburg were later cast that October. On his casting, Myers lauded Armitage for embracing the sensation of Chase's tone. Callum Shoniker also joined the project that October, but wasn't confirmed if he would reprise his role of The Copycat from Mighty Pups. He went on to voice Rocky, replacing Jackson Reid from the television series. On his casting, Myers said "Shoniker's portrayal of Rocky is suitable for everyone's favorite recycling pup." Shoniker later reprised both roles in Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie.
Following the announcement of Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie in November 2021, casting calls for new lead and supporting roles were confirmed. Taraji P. Henson was cast in May 2022 as Victoria Vance. Snoop Dogg joined the cast in October 2022 as Snoop, a fictionalized Dobermann counterpart of himself. Tom Hiddleston, Gal Gadot, Dwayne Johnson, and Henry Cavill were cast in January 2023 as Loki, Diana, Anubis, and Jupiter, which their appearances pay homage to their portrayals of Loki, Wonder Woman, Black Adam, and Superman in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Extended Universe. Mckenna Grace, Christian Convery, Lil Rel Howery, Serena Williams, James Marsden, Kristen Bell, Alan Kim, North West, and Brice Gonzalez were also cast that January as Skye, Chase, Sam Stringer, Yoga Yvette, Hank, Janet, Nano, Mini, and Tot.
Travis Willingham joined the project in February 2023 as the character of Thor. On his casting, Myers commended Willingham for resembling the voice of Thor actor Chris Hemsworth, stating that he couldn't cast Hemsworth due to his inherited two copies of the APOE4 gene to eventually develop Alzheimer's disease. Djimon Hounsou joined the cast as Shazam by the end of March 2023, which his performance references his role in the DC Extended Universe. Brian Drummond and Sam Witwer were added to the cast in April 2023 to play Hephaestus and Hades respectively. Venus Williams and Brian Dobson were added to the cast in May 2023 as Venus and Hermes. Several actors, including Ben Affleck as Pluto, Ray Fisher as Vulcan, and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Arnold, were cast in July 2023. Kevin McKidd, Russell Crowe, and Michael Chiklis were cast in August 2023 as Poseidon, Saturn, and Zeus. Ben Schwartz joined the project in September 2023 as Apollo. Heather Headley and Christopher Jackson were cast in April 2024 as Aurora and Timber.
In early stages of production, the roles of Blaze and Persephone had been linked to Scarlett Johansson and Rosario Dawson, but in November 2023, Myers reported that the role had gone to Ashley Eckstein, and in December 2024, Laura Bailey was cast as Blaze. Pierce Brosnan and Stanley Tucci had originally been cast as Chiron and Dionysus, but Glynn Turman and Jason Mantzoukas replaced Brosnan and Tucci, which their performances reference their roles in the Disney+ adaptation of Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Casting for Rubble & Crew: The Movie began by January 2023. Luxton Handspiker, Shazdeh Kapadia, Alessandro Pugiotto, Sabrina Jalees, Martin Roach, Luke Dietz, Leslie Adlam, and Cory Doran were cast in March 2024 to reprise their roles as Rubble, Mix, Charger, Auntie Crane, Grandpa Gravel, Chase, Mayor Greatway, and Speed Meister from the television series. Greg Proops and Rupert Degas were cast in undisclosed cameo appearances that March. Colin McFarlane and Rob Rackstraw were also cast in undisclosed roles by June 2024. Nylan Parthipan and Nova McKay were added to the cast in October 2024 as Wheeler and Motor.
The casting process for minor characters appearing in the PAW Patrol Cinematic Universe began after the franchise's restructuring. Kathryn Hahn was cast in March 2023 as the character of Hecate, which her role pays homage to her portrayal of Agatha Harkness in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Yonas Kibreab, Scarlett Kate Ferguson, Carson Minniear, and Mica Zeltzer were cast as Wild, Rory, Leo, and Shade by July 2023, replacing Tristan Mammitzsch, Tianna SwamiNathan, Kingston Crooks, and Markeda McKay respectively. Gabrielle Union, Rob Lowe, Garry Chalk, David Kaye, Megan Washington, Idris Elba, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Tom Everett Scott, Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, BD Wong, Laura Dern, Ian Ho, Keith Wickham, Eric Bauza, Grey DeLisle, Bobby Moynihan, Kari Wahlgren, Lou Diamond Phillips, James Monroe Iglehart, and Yvette Nicole Brown were cast to play Artemis, Apollo, Ares, Cronus, Calypso, Neptune, Rosie, Buddy, Owen, Claire, Henry, Ellie, Flicker, Harvey, Harry, Amber, Boulder, Rowan, Lion, Shadow, and Bella respectively. Robert Downey Jr. was added in October 2024 as Emperor Nero in PAW Patrol: The Multiverse Movie following his casting announcement to portray Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Reception[]
Critical response[]
| Title | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Movie | 86% (102 reviews) | 71 (56 reviews) | ||||
| Cal Brunker's PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie | 88% (96 reviews) | 84 (22 reviews) | ||||
Gallery[]
