# The Garfield Movie
**The Garfield Movie** is a 2024 American computer-animated comedy directed by Mark Dindal and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing through [Columbia Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/columbia-pictures), based on the Garfield comic strip created by Jim Davis. It stars [Chris Pratt](https://www.edgepedia.org/chris-pratt) as the voice of Garfield, a Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat who is reunited with his long-lost father, the street cat Vic (voiced by [Samuel L. Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/samuel-l-jackson)), and drawn with his dog friend Odie into a high-stakes heist.[1](https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/thegarfieldmovie) • [2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3XjsSvwSuU)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | May 24, 2024 (wide, United States); earliest release May 1, 2024 in Latin America; 101 minutes, rated PG[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5779228/) |
| Director and writers | Directed by Mark Dindal; screenplay by Paul A. Kaplan & Mark Torgove and David Reynolds[2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3XjsSvwSuU) |
| Lead voices | Chris Pratt (Garfield), Samuel L. Jackson (Vic), Harvey Guillén (Odie), Nicholas Hoult (Jon Arbuckle), Hannah Waddingham (Jinx), Ving Rhames (Otto)[2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3XjsSvwSuU) • [4](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-garfield-movie-movie-review-2024) |
| Production | Alcon Entertainment, Columbia Pictures, Prime Focus World, One Cool Group, Wayfarer Studios, DNEG Animation, and Stage 6 Films; DNEG as exclusive animation studio; budget $60 million[5](https://www.dneg.com/news/dneg-to-produce-garfield-with-alcon-entertainment) • [6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Garfield-Movie-The-%282024%29) |
| Box office | $24,006,629 domestic opening; $91,956,547 domestic; $257,211,519 worldwide[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5779228/) |
| Reception | 36% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (136 reviews) against a 79% audience Popcornmeter; Metascore 31 on Metacritic; B+ CinemaScore[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_garfield_movie) • [8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-garfield-movie/critic-reviews/) • [9](https://apnews.com/article/1b2a9c0aefec99b5105a09bfaf15679b) |
| Follow-up | A sequel is in production, with Prime Focus Studios co-producing and DNEG Animation returning[10](https://www.primefocusstudios.com/news/garfield-returns) |
## Spoilers
### Plot and characters
The story gives Garfield an origin story: as a kitten he was abandoned in an alley one rainy night by his father Vic, and the film reunites the two before drawing Garfield and Odie into a criminal plot to raid a corporate dairy and steal thousands of gallons of milk, with the gang directed by Otto, a bull voiced by [Ving Rhames](https://www.edgepedia.org/ving-rhames).[14](https://apnews.com/article/63f71f05e5316fc21bb9479fc43e34a7) Hannah Waddingham plays the gang leader Jinx and [Brett Goldstein](https://www.edgepedia.org/brett-goldstein) her henchman Roland; [Snoop Dogg](https://www.edgepedia.org/snoop-dogg) cameos as the voice of a one-eyed cat and performs a song over the credits.[14](https://apnews.com/article/63f71f05e5316fc21bb9479fc43e34a7)
The script places the character firmly in the present, with [Garfield](https://www.edgepedia.org/garfield-character) using food-delivery phone apps, watching "Catflix", and ordering lasagna by drone, and the heist sequence plays to the theme from *Mission: Impossible* with nods to [Tom Cruise](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-cruise).[14](https://apnews.com/article/63f71f05e5316fc21bb9479fc43e34a7) • [15](https://time.com/6981294/garfield-movie-story-behind-comic/) Reviewers noted that familiar comic-strip characters such as Jon, Liz, and Nermal are largely sidelined in favor of a mostly original cast.[14](https://apnews.com/article/63f71f05e5316fc21bb9479fc43e34a7)
## Production
The film was developed by the financer and producer [Alcon Entertainment](https://www.edgepedia.org/alcon-entertainment), which acquired the rights to Garfield from creator Jim Davis, who served as an executive producer. It had been in development since late 2018, before [Nickelodeon](https://www.edgepedia.org/nickelodeon) acquired the Garfield franchise in August 2019. Mark Dindal directed from a script by David Reynolds, his partner on *The Emperor's New Groove*, later credited alongside Paul A. Kaplan and Mark Torgove.[11](https://www.nickalive.net/2022/08/sony-to-release-new-garfield-movie-in.html?hl=en) • [2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3XjsSvwSuU)
**Animation.** DNEG Animation, the studio behind the film's animation, announced its involvement as exclusive animation studio producing alongside Alcon Entertainment, with Dindal directing and Pratt voicing the title character.[5](https://www.dneg.com/news/dneg-to-produce-garfield-with-alcon-entertainment) Dindal's guiding principle for the film's style was "honouring the world of Jim Davis", according to DNEG Animation's producer Shelley Smith, VFX supervisor Freddy Chaleur, and animation director Jay Boose.[12](https://www.dneg.com/news/getting-inspired-with-our-very-own-the-garfield-movie-team) Unlike the earlier theatrical Garfield films, which combined live action with a computer-animated title character, this adaptation translated the strip's 2D world entirely into 3D animation.[13](https://fileserver-az.core.ac.uk/download/639071942.pdf)
## Reception
**Critical response.** The film received generally unfavorable reviews from critics: its Metascore of 31 on Metacritic reflects 1 positive, 14 mixed, and 14 negative reviews among 29 counted, and the Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus reads that the film "rolls along at a zany enough clip to be diverting for kids, but this animated adventure doesn't much resemble Jim Davis' iconically grumpy creation."[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-garfield-movie/critic-reviews/) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_garfield_movie) Recurring criticisms included the distance of the action-heist plot from the strip's sedentary humor, product placement, and Pratt's casting; the Associated Press review gave it one and a half stars out of four, while Paste scored it 68 and the Los Angeles Times 60.[14](https://apnews.com/article/63f71f05e5316fc21bb9479fc43e34a7) • [8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-garfield-movie/critic-reviews/) Audiences responded more warmly, giving the film a B+ CinemaScore and 4.5 stars out of 5 on PostTrak, and a 79% verified audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.[9](https://apnews.com/article/1b2a9c0aefec99b5105a09bfaf15679b) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_garfield_movie)
**Box office.** Against a $60 million production budget, the film opened domestically at $24,006,629 over the [Memorial Day](https://www.edgepedia.org/memorial-day) weekend, finishing second behind *Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga* in the slowest Memorial Day box office in decades (aside from 2020). With its earlier international release it had already earned over $91.1 million by that weekend.[6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Garfield-Movie-The-%282024%29) • [16](https://apnews.com/article/1eeefc4bf4fb9ea3d138a6802342a68b) It went on to gross $91,956,547 domestically (35.8% of the total) and $257,211,519 worldwide, about 4.3 times its production budget; its largest international markets included China ($27.2 million), Mexico ($18.9 million), and the United Kingdom ($11.4 million).[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5779228/) Prime Focus Studios, a co-producer of the sequel, describes the first film as having earned over $275 million worldwide; [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) and The Numbers list lower totals of $257.2 million and $255.4 million respectively.[10](https://www.primefocusstudios.com/news/garfield-returns) • [3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5779228/) • [6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Garfield-Movie-The-%282024%29) Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released it on digital, Blu-ray, and DVD on July 9, 2024.[6](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Garfield-Movie-The-%282024%29)
## Legacy
The film's commercial performance led to a sequel: Prime Focus Studios announced its return as co-producer, partnering again with Alcon Entertainment, with DNEG Animation back as exclusive animation partner.[10](https://www.primefocusstudios.com/news/garfield-returns) The franchise has since expanded in other directions as well; in 2026 [Paramount+](https://www.edgepedia.org/paramount) announced a separate 2D-animated series from Nickelodeon Animation Studios inspired by Jim Davis's original comic strip, alongside the Sony and Alcon CGI film series with Chris Pratt.[17](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/paramount-plus/shows/garfield-wt/releases/?view=112509-paramount-announces-new-original-series-garfield-wt-from-nickelodeon-animation-studios-starring-emmy-award-winning-lamorne-morris) A comic tie-in, *Garfield* #1 from BOOM! Studios, reached comic shops in August 2024 with short stories tied to the film.[18](https://www.boom-studios.com/archives/garfield-1-first-look/)
## References
1. [THE GARFIELD MOVIE, Sony Pictures Entertainment](https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/thegarfieldmovie)
2. [THE GARFIELD MOVIE – New Trailer (HD), Sony Pictures YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3XjsSvwSuU)
3. [The Garfield Movie (2024), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt5779228/)
4. [The Garfield Movie movie review, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-garfield-movie-movie-review-2024)
5. [DNEG to produce 'Garfield' with Alcon Entertainment, DNEG](https://www.dneg.com/news/dneg-to-produce-garfield-with-alcon-entertainment)
6. [The Garfield Movie (2024) – Box Office and Financial Information, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Garfield-Movie-The-%282024%29)
7. [The Garfield Movie, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_garfield_movie)
8. [The Garfield Movie critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-garfield-movie/critic-reviews/)
9. ['Furiosa,' 'Garfield' lead slowest Memorial Day box office in decades, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/1b2a9c0aefec99b5105a09bfaf15679b)
10. [Garfield Returns, Prime Focus Studios](https://www.primefocusstudios.com/news/garfield-returns)
11. [Sony to Release New 'Garfield' Movie in February 2024, NickALive!](https://www.nickalive.net/2022/08/sony-to-release-new-garfield-movie-in.html?hl=en)
12. [Getting inspired with our very own 'The Garfield Movie' team!, DNEG](https://www.dneg.com/news/getting-inspired-with-our-very-own-the-garfield-movie-team)
13. [Academic analysis of the 2024 animated Garfield feature](https://fileserver-az.core.ac.uk/download/639071942.pdf)
14. [Movie Review: 'The Garfield Movie' is a bizarre animated tale that's not pur-fect in any way, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/63f71f05e5316fc21bb9479fc43e34a7)
15. [The Surprisingly Simple Reason Jim Davis Created the Garfield Comic Strip, TIME](https://time.com/6981294/garfield-movie-story-behind-comic/)
16. ['Furiosa' sneaks past 'Garfield' to claim No. 1 spot over Memorial Day holiday weekend, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/1eeefc4bf4fb9ea3d138a6802342a68b)
17. [Paramount+ Announces New Original Series, GARFIELD (W/T), Paramount Press Express](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/paramount-plus/shows/garfield-wt/releases/?view=112509-paramount-announces-new-original-series-garfield-wt-from-nickelodeon-animation-studios-starring-emmy-award-winning-lamorne-morris)
18. [GARFIELD #1 First Look, BOOM! Studios](https://www.boom-studios.com/archives/garfield-1-first-look/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Films by genre, form, and subject › Animated and short films › Animated films by source material and subject › Films based on comics and games*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license