There is no Chicken Run without its hero, which is why fans of the original movie might be surprised that Julia Sawalha’s Ginger has been recast for Chicken Run 2.
With Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget due to be released on Netflix on December 15, 2023, eagle-eyed fans of the franchise will have noticed that Julia Sawalha is no longer the voice behind our main hero.
Thandiwe Newton has now taken over the role, starring alongside Zachary Levi as Rocky, as the pair lead the charge back into the coop to stop Mrs. Tweedy from causing havoc once more.
While some fans have been left questioning why Ginger needed a new voice, Sawalha herself was revealed to also have been asking for an answer.
Why was Julia Sawalha’s Ginger recast in Chicken Run 2?
Julia Sawalha was chosen not to return for Chicken Run 2 after being told she was “too old” to voice the role.
Shortly after the sequel was announced in 2020, Sawalha posted an open letter online explaining how she had received the news from her agent.
Julia Sawalha has announced that she will not be reprising her role of Ginger in Netflix’s ‘CHICKEN RUN 2’ after producers stated that some of the original voices sounded too old.
(Source: https://t.co/MDlRANcp7i) pic.twitter.com/CGti2hmhsb
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) July 10, 2020
“Last week I was informed out of the blue, via email, through my agent that I would not be cast as Ginger in the Chicken Run sequel,” Sawalha started. “The reason they gave is that my voice now sounds ‘too old’ and they want a younger actress to reprise the role.”
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The character’s current voice, Thandiwe Newton, is only 4 years younger than Sawalha now, making Julia Sawalha’s Ginger almost the same age.
The open letter continues to explain that Sawalha had provided the film’s producers with her own voice test, proving that she could match her current voice to the voice of Ginger in the 2000 film.
In the publicly made clip, which can be found below, Sawalha explained that the official response was: “Some of the voices (not yours, I agree) definitely sound older… we will be going ahead to re-cast the voice of Ginger.”
Never forget that Julia Sawalha did a voice-matching test to prove that she sounded EXACTLY like she did when she first played Ginger in #ChickenRun and that the producers AGREED that she sounded the same but decided to recast #ChickenRun2 anyway… pic.twitter.com/nEKF172h1U
— DMac™ (@1nclusionRider) September 5, 2023
“To say that I am devastated and furious would be an understatement,” Sawalha concluded. “I feel totally powerless, something in all of this doesn’t ring quite true. I trust my instincts and they are waving red flags.
“I am saddened that I have lost the chance to work with the great Nick Park and Peter Lord from whom I learnt so much. The three of us, together, created Ginger.”
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget hits Netflix on December 15, 2023. Find out more about the sequel here.