Holly Hunter and Craig T. Nelson Discuss Bringing Elastigirl and Mr. Incredible Back To Life 14 Years After The Incredibles

 Thank you to Disney•Pixar for hosting me during the #Incredibles2Event.

The Incredibles was released back in 2004. It’s not common to have a sequel released fourteen years after the original, but in the case of Holly Hunter and Craig T. Nelson, they’ve been ready to return to their roles as Elastigirl and Mr. Incredible that entire time.

How did it feel to return to their roles from The Incredibles?

Holly: We were not hesitating in wanting to do this sequel.

Craig: It was exciting because it was fourteen years- what is he gonna do; what are they gonna come up with; how can it be different; where are we gonna pick it up? I mean, we didn’t know anything.

Did they expect The Incredibles to have a sequel?

Holly: I thought that it was quite amusing that the movie would pick up literally fifteen seconds after the first movie. That was just so funny to me, and a completely impossible thing to do in a regular film… The ability of animation to do that was just so delightful. There were so many things about this opportunity for me which were kind of effortless… We record with Brad and only with Brad, and so fourteen years later to encounter Brad again, with a microphone between us, was just fun.

Craig: We did the first one [and] we didn’t know what it was gonna be. The thing turns out to be huge, right? So we’re waiting to see when we’re gonna do the sequel, because, you know, you’re still actors and you’re finding, or at least some of us find, that we’re not always working. So you’re looking forward. “Oh, well, I’ve got that to look forward to, maybe.” And the third year comes. And the fourth year.

Holly: And then the ninth year. And then the ten year anniversary.

Craig: And hell, you’re too old to do it anymore. Oh, they don’t want me, you know. And if they’re gonna do another one, well, they’ll probably get a new Bob.

Holly: I was thinking maybe Bob and Helen would be dead by then.

Craig: I was looking forward to doing the rest home version.

What do they think kids and adults will take away from the movie?

Holly: It’s a great thing for kids to see this movie, not just little girls, but boys, too. It’s great for everybody to see what men and women are capable of, that men are capable of being fantastic, nurturing parents. And it’s fantastic and delightful to see Elastigirl living up to this gift that she has without any apology. She just is going for it, and losing herself in it, which is a beautiful thing. I think also, for mothers, it’s great for a mother to be able to be fully engaged in something that has nothing to do with parenting, and I think that that’s difficult for all of us to actually give ourselves license to just go that deeply.

What’s it like to hear their voices coming out of toys and things like the upcoming Incredicoaster?

Holly: I haven’t encountered [my] dolls, but I have encountered Mr. Incredible. That’s been since the first movie. Actually, I love it. I think it’s fun.

Craig: One of my great grandsons, his whole room is Incredibles. You go in, and it’s like a Pixar store. It’s amazing.

Where did the cast’s chemistry come from?

Holly: This is the gift of Brad Bird. This is what Brad can do that’s so phenomenal is the chemistry that I think the cast has together. We do have chemistry, but you know what that is? When Brad cast the Incredibles, the original one, he didn’t go down a list of actors and actress who were like the hot names of that moment. He had in mind the sound of the movie; the sound of the characters together, and in that, I think, Brad had a chemistry in mind that was audio, because that’s the kind of guy that he is; that’s the kind of artist that he is. Craig and I never met each other until about nine months ago. That’s the first time that we met each other. So that chemistry is inherent in us, in Sarah Vowell who plays Violet, and Sam Jackson who’s Frozone, with Mr. Incredible. That’s Brad putting it together before he ever knew us. His imagination was at work putting the chemistry together.

Check out all of the Incredibles 2 action

I’m sharing lots more about Incredibles 2 here on the blog. Download these fun Incredibles 2 printables before you head to the theater on June 15th!

In “Incredibles 2,” Helen (voice of Holly Hunter) is called on to lead a campaign to bring Supers back, while Bob (voice of Craig T. Nelson) navigates the day-to-day heroics of “normal” life at home with Violet (voice of Sarah Vowell), Dash (voice of Huck Milner) and baby Jack-Jack—whose super powers are about to be discovered. Their mission is derailed, however, when a new villain emerges with a brilliant and dangerous plot that threatens everything. But the Parrs don’t shy away from a challenge, especially with Frozone (voice of Samuel L. Jackson) by their side. That’s what makes this family so Incredible.

Written and directed by Brad Bird (“Iron Giant,” “The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille”) and produced by John Walker (“The Incredibles,” “Tomorrowland”) and Nicole Grindle (“Sanjay’s Super Team” short, “Toy Story 3” associate producer), Disney•Pixar’s “Incredibles 2” busts into theaters on June 15, 2018.