The Tale of Despereaux (film)

The Tale of Despereaux
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
Screenplay byGary Ross
Story by
Based onThe Tale of Despereaux
by Kate DiCamillo
Produced by
  • Gary Ross
  • Allison Thomas
Starring
CinematographyBrad Blackbourn
Edited byMark Solomon
Music byWilliam Ross
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • December 7, 2008 (2008-12-07) (ArcLight Hollywood)
  • December 19, 2008 (2008-12-19) (United States and United Kingdom)
Running time
93 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$60 million
Box office$90.5 million

The Tale of Despereaux (/ˈdɛspər/ DESP-ər-oh) is a 2008 animated fantasy adventure comedy film loosely based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Kate DiCamillo. It was directed by Sam Fell and Rob Stevenhagen, and written by Gary Ross, based on a story by Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi. It features the voices of Matthew Broderick, Robbie Coltrane, Dustin Hoffman, Richard Jenkins, Kevin Kline, Frank Langella, William H. Macy, James Nesbitt, and Tracey Ullman, with Sigourney Weaver narrating the film.

The Tale of Despereaux premiered at ArcLight Hollywood on December 7, 2008, before being theatrically released in the United States and the United Kingdom on December 19, by Universal Pictures. It received mixed reviews from critics and was a box-office disappointment, grossing $90 million worldwide on a budget of $60 million.