50 Greatest Talking Movie Animals
Furry, fat, flatulent, fluffy…
Fiver in Watership Down
The Real Animal: A fluffy, frisky bunny that spends its days munching on your prize cabbages and ruining your lawn.
The Movie Animal: Fiver, Watership Down ’s rabbit-sized hero gifted with real vision when it comes to averting the end of the world.
Best Quote: “Look. Look. That's the place for us. High, lonely hills, where the wind and the sound carry, and the ground’s as dry as straw in a barn. That's where we ought to be. That's where we have to get to.”
Steve in Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs
The Real Animal: A Vervet monkey that lives in Africa. It likes eating bird eggs and young chicks, as well as grasshoppers and termites. Charming.
The Movie Animal: The coolest monkey you ever did see, equipped with a Speak and Spell thought translating device that lets Steve verbalise the inner workings of his brilliant mind.
Best Quote: “Gummi bears!”
Skipper in Madagascar
The Real Animal: A penguin. A bird that lacks the ability to fly. Yawn.
The Movie Animal: Spotlight-stealing CGI penguin Skipper, a lovably paranoid commando obsessed with getting back to the homeland – no matter what the cost.
Best Quote: “Just smile and wave, boys. Smile and wave.”
Milo And Otis
The Real Animal: A tabby cat and a fawn pug, both of which live for food, sleep and excretion.
The Movie Animal: This cuddly twosome come courtesy of Japanese cinema, and find themselves going on an adventure when they’re separated. Too cute for words.
Best Quote: “Want some more dinner? Remember, you're eating for eight now!”
Fritz the Cat
The Real Animal: Another feline. Has the ability to lick bits you wish you could lick. Generally lazy and fickle.
The Movie Animal: The rudest on this list by a mile, Fritz is frisky as they come – and a smooth operator with the ladies.
Best Quote: “I’ve been up and down the four corners of this big old world. I’ve seen it all and I’ve done it all. I’ve fought many a good man, and I’ve laid many a good woman.”
Remy in Ratatouille
The Real Animal: A disease-infested rat, the likes of which populate the sewers and waterways of just about every city in the world.
The Movie Animal: Adorable, house-proud Remy, whose desire to cook completely baffles the rest of his clan – but whose drive pushed him on to bigger and better things.
Best Quote: “If you are what you eat, then I only want to eat the good stuff.”
Rango
The Real Animal: A chameleon, which has the nasty habit of disappearing before your very eyes. They also like staring…
The Movie Animal: Rango, who wears the coolest shirt ever (a nod to Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas ) and lives in the Wild West. Oh, and he’s voiced by Johnny Depp.
Best Quote: “I couldn't help but notice you noticing me noticing you.”
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Mumble in Happy Feet
The Real Animal: Another penguin, this one an Emperor Penguin, the tallest and heaviest of all penguins. Not exactly something to brag about.
The Movie Animal: Cuddliest, happy-clappiest of all penguins, Mumble’s equipped with some of the coolest dance moves we’ve seen on screen since Saturday Night Fever.
Best Quote: “It’s just like... singing, with your body.”
Aslan in The Chronicles Of Narnia
The Real Animal: Lion. King of the pride lands. Sleeps a lot. Yada yada yada.
The Movie Animal: Aslan, also known as ‘the Great Lion’ because, essentially he’s Narnia’s version of God. Which is pretty damned cool if you ask us.
Best Quote: “Peter Pevensie, formerly of Finchley. Beaver also mentioned that you planned on turning him into a hat.”
Sid in Ice Age
The Real Animal: A sloth, the laziest of all creatures and, weirdly, genetically related to armadillos and anteaters.
The Movie Animal: An endearingly clumsy chatterbox, Sid would annoy the hell out of you if you had to put up with him in real life. As a movie character, though, he’s hilarious – a lisping, accident-prone try-hard with a brain the size of a grape.
Best Quote: “Look, the tigers are just playing tag with the antelope... With their teeth…”
Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.