Picture: Netflix / BBC
This holiday season brings about the triumphant return of one of Britain’s most beloved animated duos, Wallace & Gromit! In the new movie Vengeance Most Fowl, they come face-to-face with their old nemesis, the evil penguin Feathers McGraw!
Over 15 years since Wallace & Gromit was last on our screens, creator Nick Park is back with another installment. Vengeance Most Fowl comes from dream team Nick Park, Mark Crossingham, and Mark Burton.
The feature-length film acts as a follow-up to the beloved Wallace & Gromit adventure The Wrong Trousers (1993), re-introducing fans to one of cinema’s most notorious villains, the evil penguin mastermind, Feathers McGraw. In the movie, McGraw seeks revenge on his sworn enemies by attempting an epic prison break with the help of a nifty, smart gnome, Norbot.
We recently had the pleasure of interviewing Vengeance Most Fowl screenwriter Mark Burton about his work on the project. Check out our interview below!
What’s On Netflix: Can you tell us how the idea for Vengeance Most Fowl came to life? What drew you to this particular story?
Mark Burton: Nick Park, creator of Wallace & Gromit, had for a while been ruminating over a story about a robot gnome that disrupts Wallace & Gromit’s household but felt that the idea of a robot going wrong wasn’t quite enough in itself – there needed to be a villain. Meanwhile, lots of people were asking him – “will Feathers ever make a comeback?” – and the two things naturally came together to turn a robot-going-wrong story into a vengeance story, “Cape Fear with penguins” is how Nick describes it!
WoN: How did you and Nick Park develop the story for Vengeance Most Fowl? Did the idea of bringing back Feathers McGraw come from one of you, or was it a shared decision?
Nick was already considering bringing Feathers McGraw back. I was brought on to help Nick mesh these two elements together – Feathers and Wallace’s invention of Norbot, the smart gnome. We originally planned a two-episode story, but it quickly became apparent that we had something epic enough to make a full-length movie.
The themes around technology — who controls your technology, and how much is too much technology in our lives? — was something we discussed together. In a way, it reflects Aardman’s own relationship with technology – how to retain the humanity and warmth of their wonderful, thumb-print-covered stop frame animation whilst adapting and utilizing the latest technology that filmmakers can draw on.
WoN: Fans are so excited to see Feathers McGraw return after all these years — How much fun was it to bring him back?
A lot of fun. The problem was to stop him completely taking over! We initially had a much longer introductory set piece that told the backstory of Feather’s time in the pen.
It was sort of like the Shawshank Redemption, without the redemption part. But the story needed to stay with Wallace & Gromit, and so we’re reunited with Feathers pretty much at the point where he hatches a plan to get out – a plan that involves hacking Wallace’s favourite invention… Feathers’ desire for vengeance, combined with his evil ingenuity, becomes an almost unstoppably powerful force in the story… if it wasn’t for Gromit.
WoN: Wallace and Gromit’s relationship has always been at the heart of each film. How would you describe their relationship in Vengeance Most Fowl?
At the start of the story, Wallace is in danger of letting technology come between him and his affection for Gromit – he even invents a Pat-o-Matic to save himself time petting Gromit. But Gromit also needs to embrace the good that technology can bring. It’s all about finding that balance. There are times in the film when Gromit and Wallace’s relationship is under great strain, but their love for each other overcomes all obstacles in the end.
WoN: Like all other Wallace & Gromit movies, Vengeance Most Fowl is hilarious. I think it could be the funniest yet! What’s the secret to maintaining the unique humour and tone of Wallace & Gromit, and how do you approach writing for it?
Some say it’s very British humour, although not sure how you define what that is. But trying to be funny is a serious business. We spitball lots of comic ideas — setpieces, sight gags and jokes, and try them out, then fiddle with them to get the timing just right. Then, we regularly do what we call ‘comedy punch-ups’ where we look to see if we can add any more jokes to the existing reel.
We were ably assisted by two writers from Motherland – Holly Walsh & Barunka O’Shaughnessy, who came in to help ‘punch up’ the script in a few places. And the board artists and the production team add loads of brilliant little touches, too. If it’s funny, it goes in.
WoN: Wallace’s latest invention is Norbot, a smart gnome. What characteristics did you want to emphasize in Norbot to make him seamlessly fit into the world of Wallace & Gromit?
He’s charming, funny – and at times a little bit sinister. Wallace & Gromit often mixes humour and warmth with a touch of the Gothic. In fact, Nick Park has invented a new genre we’re calling gnome gnoir.
Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2024
WoN: What was the collaborative process like between yourself, Nick Park, and Merlin Crossingham?
I’ve worked a lot with Nick, right back through Chicken Run, The Curse of The Were-rabbit, and Early Man. Merlin, I knew Aardman as a brilliant animator and creative who had even built his own bike (with a bespoke wooden frame). So I admired his bike-making skills but hadn’t worked with him before.
We got on terrifically, and the three of us became a tight-knit team. We would have long sessions working through story ideas together, then I would go off and script it, and they would board the script, and off we’d go again. It was intense but constructive and productive. They always canvassed my opinions on things, but at the end of the day, they were the directors, and they made the final decisions.
We thank Mark Burton for his time. You can read my hugely positive 4-star review of Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl.
