Hold onto your crackers, folks — Feathers McGraw is back back back! Now yes, we have known of the felonious fake fowl’s return for some time now; his dastardly mugshot adorned the first teaser trailer for Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, the feature-length comeback of everyone’s favourite dog-and-his-man duo. But now, with the release of the latest trailer for Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham’s new Aardman Animation, we’ve got our first proper look at the beady-eyed villainy that awaits. Check it out below… if you dare:
Feathers McGraw is out of the clink — and out for revenge — in this new, lengthier look at what Park and Crossingham have been calling the world’s first ‘Gnome Noir’. And it looks like Wallace’s (Ben Whitehead) latest invention, smart gnome Norbot (Reece Shearsmith), is the eminently hackable and blissfully unaware lynchpin of McGraw’s newest bird-brained scheme. With his slightly-too-cute grin and gently menacing voice, Norbot feels right at home in the world of Wallace and Gromit (which looks better than ever here — cracking claymation!), but, as we see here, ol’ Feathers is set to use the unsuspecting garden ornament to wreak havoc upon the residents of Wigan. Cue canal barge chases, a spate of robberies, and a rematch between a foolish inventor and his clever canine, and the baddest bird in all of cinema. We Camembert the tension!
Here’s the official synopsis one last time for the film: “Vengeance Most Fowl sees Gromit’s growing concern as Wallace becomes over-dependent on his inventions – which proves justified when Wallace invents a ‘smart gnome’ that seems to develop an evil mind of its own. But who or what could be the cause? As events begin to spiral out of control, it’s up to Gromit to put aside his qualms and battle sinister forces, or Wallace may never be able to invent again!” Also along for the adventure are Peter Kay, who’s reprising his Curse Of The Were-Rabbit role as Chief Inspector Mackintosh, and newcomers Lauren Patel, Diane Morgan, Adjoa Andoh, and Lenny Henry.
Will Wallace and Gromit finally (figuratively) clip Feathers McGraw’s wicked wings for good? Could Norbot resist his programming and find a way to save the day? And can Aardman please make Wallace’s woollen onesie available to buy in adult sizes? We’ll find out when Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl premieres on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Christmas Day, and on Netflix worldwide on 3 January. Brielliant stuff!