Exclusive: Javier Bardem talks live-action/animated musical comedy Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile
Coming out this week from Sony Pictures is the live-action/CGI musical comedy Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, based on the best-selling book series by Bernard Waber and starring Academy Award-winner Javier Bardem, Constance Wu, Scoot McNairy, Winslow Fegley and Shawn Mendes.
Directed and produced by Will Speck and Josh Gordon, the film brings this beloved character to a new, global audience.
When the Primm family (Wu, Scoot McNairy, Winslow Fegley) moves to New York City, their young son Josh struggles to adapt to his new school and new friends. All of that changes when he discovers Lyle - a singing crocodile (Mendes) who loves baths, caviar and great music-living in the attic of his new home. The two become fast friends, but when Lyle’s existence is threatened by evil neighbor Mr. Grumps (Brett Gelman), the Primms must band together with Lyle’s charismatic owner, Hector P. Valenti (Bardem), to show the world that family can come from the most unexpected places and there’s nothing wrong with a big singing crocodile with an even bigger personality.
For Bardem, who’s mostly associated numerous dramas such as his Oscar-winning work in No Country For Old Men, the film marks a rare opportunity to enter the family-friendly genre. Among his other film credits include Before Night Fall, Biutiful, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, the James Bond film Skyfall, and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.
More recently he appeared in Legendary’s Dune, Fernando León de Aranoa’s The Good Boss (El Buen Patron) and Aaron Sorkin’s Being The Ricardos, where he played Desi Arnaz, opposite Nicole Kidman’s Lucille Ball. Besides reprising his role in Dune 2, Bardem is set to play King Triton in Disney’s The Little Mermaid adaptation.
Blackfilmandtv.com’s Wilson Morales spoke with Bardem about his experience on Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile and what goes into saying yes to the projects he takes.