Tessa Thompson is to join the live-action reboot of Disney’s ‘Lady and the Tramp’.
The 34-year-old actress is said to be in negotiations with the studio to voice the lead role of Lady the cocker spaniel in the forthcoming flick, which will skip cinemas and instead air on the studio’s soon-to-be launched digital streaming service next year, opposite Justin Theroux, who will voice the Tramp, according to Deadline.com.
Benedict Wong will voice Bull, an English bulldog, Kiersey Clemons will play the character of Darling, while Ashley Jensen will voice a Scottish Terrier named Jackie.
Jackie is the female version of the original Jock – who appeared in the 1955 animated film – and lived next door to Lady and was one of her best friends.
Filmmaker Charlie Bean – who is known for directing ‘Tron: Uprising’ and ‘The LEGO Ninjago Movie’ – has agreed to direct.
Brigham Taylor, who worked on ‘The Jungle Book’ remake back in 2016, is producing the picture while Andrew Bujalski is penning the script.
The movie follows the unlikely love story between a pampered Cocker Spaniel named Lady and a streetwise mongrel named Tramp.
Lady finds herself out on the streets after her owners have a baby but she is saved by Tramp who shows her how to live her life free and collarless.
One of the most iconic scenes from the film is the candlelit spaghetti dinner in an alley while two humans sing ‘Bella Notte’.
‘Lady and the Tramp’ – which was Disney’s 15th animated feature – was nominated for Best Picture at the 1956 BAFTA awards.
The movie also featured the song ‘He’s a Tramp’ which was performed by jazz singer Peggy Lee, who also voiced four characters as well as co-wrote six tracks.
The studio’s new streaming service is reportedly set to have four to six movies a year including film and TV from Disney’s brands such as Pixar, Marvel and ‘Star Wars’.
Disney has already rebooted many of its beloved animations including ‘The Jungle Book’, ‘Beauty and the Beast’, ‘Maleficent’ and ‘Cinderella’.
And the company has a number of films lined up for live action updates such as ‘Mulan’, ‘The Lion King’, ‘Aladdin’, ‘The Little Mermaid’ and ‘Pinocchio’.
Tessa Thompson joins Lady and the Tramp
