Below a scorching sun Sunday, the cast and crew of Teen Titans Go! To the Movies — which includes actress Kristen Bell, Will Arnett (who also produced the film), Lil Yachty and Patton Oswalt — turned out to the red carpet at Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theatre for the movie’s premiere.
The festivities featured a carnival-like preparty with balloons sprawling across the Chinese Theatre courtyard, where kids were seen indulging in arcade games and decorating stations. With the dark nature of new superhero movies and the type of news making headlines, the cast and crew of the new Warner Bros. animated feature made it clear that the film will offer moviegoers an escape in an otherwise troubling time.
“The world is ready for a laugh,” Tara Strong, who voices the character of Raven, told The Hollywood Reporter on the carpet.
Teen Titans Go! To the Movies brings the DC Universe bunch of Robin (Scott Menville), Beast Boy (Greg Cipes), Raven (Strong), Cyborg (Khary Payton) and Starfire (Hynden Walch) together for a feature-length adventure after the ongoing success of the Cartoon Network TV series. In the film, Robin, aka Batman’s sidekick, has had enough of being left on the sidelines. So when a Hollywood producer (voiced by Bell) teases the possibility of the titans getting their own movie, Robin and the gang do whatever they can to make it to the big screen.
Currently Teen Titans Go! To The Movies boasts a 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes with 11 “fresh” reviews. On the carpet, co-directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic revealed what has made the superhero flick so appealing so fast.
“It’s refreshing in the sense it doesn’t take itself seriously,” Horvath said. “We take a lot of shots at the Marvel universe and DC Universe as well as Hollywood movies in general, so the lighthearted, crowd-pleasing atmosphere is what makes it so much fun.”
The jokes in Teen Titans Go! To the Movies include a quip in the trailer about a Green Lantern movie nobody wants to talk about, referring to Ryan Reynolds’ ill-fated 2011 film. Poking fun is part of the Teen Titans’ all-fun, all-the-time attitude, Horvath said. But that doesn’t mean they haven’t been hit with an email or two from DC and Marvel to tone it down.
“We know we’ve gone too far when DC sends us a very nice email that says, ‘Please take that joke out of the movie,’ ” Horvath said with a laugh.
Cipes, who voices the character of Beast Boy, recently appeared at San Diego Comic-Con in full Beast Boy garb.
Beastboy and Beastboy hanging outs at @Comic_Con! #beastboy @TeenTitansMovie pic.twitter.com/LsYLP2AmLI
— Greg Cipes (@GregCipes) July 22, 2018
The premiere at Chinese Theatre was no different. It’s a free-spirited nature that’s at the heart of the movie and what will make audiences come see it July 27, he said.
“It’s a testament that we all need to laugh more,” Cipes said as co-star Scott Menville creeped up behind him for a hug. “It’s going to make people laugh. It’s undeniable.”
Teen Titans Go! To the Movies arrives in theaters July 27.
