Having earned more than $1B six years ago, Disney's Alice in Wonderland was always going to get a sequel. It was just a matter of when and who would be at the helm since Tim Burton wouldn't be returning. But it doesn't look as if he needs to as James Bobin is clearly embracing Burton's style in Alice Through the Looking Glass, which has just debuted a trippy new trailer.
Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, and Helena Bonham Carter all return to Underland for another polished, fantastical 3D adventure. Rhys Ifans, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Matt Lucas are among the supporting cast, with Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen, Timothy Spall, and the late Alan Rickman providing their voices to the film's many CGI creations. Here's the official synopsis:
Alice Kingsleigh (Wasikowska) has spent the past few years following in her father’s footsteps and sailing the high seas. Upon her return to London, she comes across a magical looking glass and returns to the fantastical realm of Underland and her friends the White Rabbit (Sheen), Absolem (Rickman), the Cheshire Cat (Fry) and the Mad Hatter (Depp), who is not himself. The Hatter has lost his Muchness, so Mirana (Hathaway) sends Alice on a quest to borrow the Chronosphere, a metallic globe inside the chamber of the Grand Clock which powers all time. Returning to the past, she comes across friends – and enemies – at different points in their lives, and embarks on a perilous race to save the Hatter before time runs out.
Does the massive box office of the first film guarantee equal success for the long-awaited sequel? It's important to remember that was a time when 3D was just beginning to leap forward in quality, largely due to the advancements made by James Cameron's $2B-grossing Avatar a year earlier. The format is less of a novelty now so there probably won't be the same level of curiosity.
It's also very interesting to hear Pink covering Jefferson Airplane's drug-influenced "White Rabbit", with Disney embracing the story's psychedelic connection more openly than expected.
Alice Through the Looking Glass opens May 27th.
