- ‘The Tiger’s Apprentice’ animated movie is based on the first book in the trilogy series.
- The books are about a young Chinese-American boy who becomes a magical apprentice.
- The film is set to feature the voices of Sandra Oh, Henry Golding, Lucy Liu, and Michelle Yeoh.
The Tiger’s Apprentice novel series, from award-winning author Laurence Yep, tells the story of a young Chinese American boy named Tom Lee, who is drawn into the world of magic. The action-adventure fantasy books are being made into a movie. The upcoming animated film, The Tiger’s Apprentice, was officially announced in March 2019, and will be based on the first installment in the trilogy book series. An all-star lineup of Asian-American actors, including Sandra Oh and Henry Golding, have already been cast in the upcoming movie.
Below is everything we know about The Tiger’s Apprentice film, including the cast, release date, and more.
The Tiger’s Apprentice (Book 1)
The first book in The Tiger’s Apprentice trilogy was published in 2003. It follows a young Chinese American boy named Tom Lee, who is living with his eccentric grandmother Mrs. Lee, in San Francisco. After Mrs. Lee’s death, Tom ends up in the care of Mr. Hu, the talking tiger who teaches Tom about magic. Tom has to learn how to wield magic while protecting the ancient phoenix from Vatten and the Clan of Nine. Tom is joined by a band of mythological misfits, including the exiled dragon Mistral, on his adventure.
The main plot points in the first book are expected to carry over into The Tiger’s Apprentice movie. However, it’s possible that the animated film also introduces some changes from the novel. More movies beyond the first one have not been officially announced yet. The book trilogy also includes Tiger’s Blood, released 2005, and Tiger Magic, released 2006.
Where and When To Watch
The Tiger’s Apprentice current release date is slated for January 19, 2024. The animated movie was originally supposed to come out on February 11, 2022, before it was delayed to February, 10, 2023, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was delayed again to December 20, 2023, and then to January 19, 2024. The film is expected to be released in theaters that day. It’s also possible the movie is eventually available to stream on Paramount+, since Paramount Pictures is producing it.
The first teaser for The Tiger’s Apprentice was released on February 1, 2022, in honor of the start of the Year of the Tiger in Asian culture. It showed the official logo for the movie, with “2023,” which was when the film was supposed to be released.
Cast and Crew
Cast
Get ready to hear the voices of A-list stars when you watch The Tiger’s Apprentice. Brandon Soo Hoo (From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series) will voice Tom, Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians) will voice Mr. Hu, Michelle Yeoh will voice Mrs. Lee, and Sandra Oh will voice Mistral. The voice cast also includes Bowen Yang, Lucy Liu, Leah Lewis, Patrick Gallagher, Deborah S. Craig, and Sherry Cola.
Henry Golding was the first person to be cast in the film, in July 2020. Four months later, news broke that Sandra Oh, Brendan Soo Hoo, and Bowen Yang were joining the movie. Lucy Liu’s role was confirmed in July 2022, after the film’s release date was pushed back to January 19, 2024.
Who is the Creative Team?
Carlos Baena was supposed to make his directorial debut with The Tiger’s Apprentice. Carlos is a professional animator who started working at Pixar in 2002, where he worked on Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Toy Story 3, Ratatouille, and WALL-E. But Carlos was replaced as director by Raman Hui in January 2022. Raman directed Monster Hunt and Monster Hunt 2. He’ll be joined by co-directors Paul Watling and Yong Duk Jhun, while Bob Persichetti is producing. David Magee and Harry Cripps are the screenwriters. Paramount Animation, under Paramount Pictures, is leading the film while Mikros Image Europe is providing the animation. The two companies previously collaborated on the 2018 animated movie Sherlock Gnomes.
Filming Details
The status of production on The Tiger’s Apprentice is unclear, at the moment. Since it’s an animated movie, everything can be done remotely, including the actors delivering their voice lines as their characters. Paramount Pictures has not given a definitive timeline on how far along they are in creating The Tiger’s Apprentice. HollywoodLife will continue to keep you updated on the upcoming animated movie right here.