Megamind

STARRING Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill
WRITTEN BY Alan J. Schoolcraft, Brent Simons
DIRECTED BY Tom McGrath

Much like Superman, the supervillain Megamind (voiced by Will Ferrell) was sent to Earth as a baby by his parents to escape a dying planet. ”[But] instead of landing in a nurturing environment,” explains director Tom McGrath (Madagascar), ”Megamind landed in a prison.” Thus the blue-skinned alien is stuck on the losing side of a lifelong struggle against the virtuous and vain superhero Metro Man (Brad Pitt). ”He is always of an earnest belief that this new and latest plan is actually going to work,” says Ferrell. ”He’s really kind of a sweet guy who’s just looking for attention.” Megamind certainly draws attention, thanks to his eye-catching sartorial style, which Ferrell describes as ”Mick Jagger meets AC/DC mixed with a Swedish speed-metal band.”

But then Megamind manages to succeed with one of his dastardly plans. He vanquishes Metro Man, gains control of Metro City, and unexpectedly falls for the Lois Lane-like TV reporter Roxanne Ritchi (Tina Fey), his repeated victim of choice. ”For some reason, Megamind keeps kidnapping her,” explains McGrath. ”They’re so familiar with each other that they usually end up squabbling like an old married couple.” To help nail their back-and-forth banter on screen, Ferrell and Fey defied animated-movie convention and recorded several of their exchanges together in the same sound booth. ”There’s a lot to be said for being able to look across and make eye contact when you’re doing a scene,” says Ferrell, who signed on for the role after Robert Downey Jr. dropped out due to scheduling difficulties. ”We were actually able to improvise a few things.”