Movies

'UglyDolls' Trailer: Plush Creatures Come To Life In An Animated Story Of Acceptance

UglyDolls trailer
By Ben Pearson/

Who's ready for another animated musical about how your quirks are what make you stand out from the crowd? STX Entertainment is getting into the animation game with an UglyDolls movie, which is based on the popular plush toys that debuted back in 2001. And since this is a musical, they've gathered some big names in the music industry to lend their voices to these weird, wacky characters: Kelly Clarkson, Blake Shelton, Pitbull, Janelle Monae, and Nick Jonas. Check out the second trailer below.

UglyDolls Trailer

Kelly Asbury, the director of films like Shrek 2, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, Gnomeo and Juliet, and Smurfs: The Lost Village, directs this music-heavy tale of acceptance and non-conformity with Robert Rodriguez (Alita: Battle Angel) on board as a producer. I'm not going to pretend that this movie appeals to me, but those messages are always important for young viewers to hear, so there's value in wrapping them up in a goofy musical package and letting kids absorb them like this. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see this gross a billion dollars and launch a four-movie franchise.

Here's the official synopsis:

In the adorably different town of Uglyville, weird is celebrated, strange is special and beauty is embraced as more than simply meets the eye. Here, the free-spirited Moxy and her UglyDolls friends live every day in a whirlwind of bliss, letting their freak flags fly in a celebration of life and its endless possibilities, occasionally looking to the sky, where a new UglyDoll will appear and be embraced by the community.

Moxy (Kelly Clarkson) loves her square-peg life in this round-hole town, but her curiosity about all things leads her to wonder if there's something – anything – on the other side of the mountain which nestles Uglyville. Moxy gathers a group of her closest friends and sets off to find what's on the other side. They discover another world – Perfection – a town where more conventional dolls are trained in protocols before they graduate and are sent to the "real" world to find the love of a child.

In Perfection, Moxy and her crew are subject to the manipulations of Lou (Nick Jonas), the perfect doll in charge of training recruits. Here, the UglyDolls will confront what it means to be different, struggle with their desire to be loved, and ultimately discover that you don't have to be perfect to be amazing because who you truly are is what matters most. Also starring in the voice cast of UGLYDOLLS are Wanda Sykes, Emma Roberts, Gabriel Iglesias, and Wang Leehom.

UglyDolls arrives in theaters on May 10, 2019.

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