Trailer
Plot summary
On a free-range farm, Reggie the turkey warns his flock that Thanksgiving means turkeys on the plate, and the flock treats him as an outcast. When the President arrives for the National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation, the birds mistake the visit for the farmer come to slaughter them and shove Reggie out of the coop. The President's daughter picks him for the pardon, and Reggie settles into Camp David, where he watches television and eats pizza. A wild turkey named Jake abducts him, saying a being called the Great Turkey gave him a mission: travel to the first Thanksgiving and take turkeys off the menu. The pair steal a time machine run by an AI named S.T.E.V.E. and land in 1621, three days before the feast, where Pilgrims and a hidden turkey flock are already at odds.
Cast
- Jeff Biancalanaas General Sagan / Hazmats / Additional Voice Talent (voice)
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Free Birds (2013)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Production was retooled mid-stream: Ash Brannon was set to direct, but studio executives disliked the film's cartoonish look, made the plot more serious, fired Brannon and gave the job to Jimmy Hayward.
- The score was first assigned to Steve Martin, whose demo featured vocals by Leonard Nimoy; when the film was pushed toward a more serious tone Martin left, and Dominic Lewis composed the score instead.
- Almost a decade after its release, Free Birds gained a cult following, and Jake's line about going back in time to get turkeys off the menu, repeated to the viewer, became a popular Internet meme.
- Early drafts had two characters that were later cut: Buck McDonald, voiced by Luke Wilson, who was meant to be the first person to travel through time, and a cybernetic pig from the future that hunted turkeys; Reggie and Jake were then called Brock.
