In 1989, Disney officially unveiled Chip ‘n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers, an animated series that was created for the Disney Channel’s afternoon programming block. The show cast Disney’s iconic chipmunks as part of a team of private detectives that also included Gadget, Monterey Jack, and a fly named Zipper. Disney+ has been working on a live-action adaptation of the show for some time, and now that the first trailer for Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers has arrived, it’s clear that this movie isn’t what anyone was expecting.
Instead of simply rebooting the series, the Rescue Rangers movie reimagines Chip and Dale as animated stars who used to headline a show of the same name — it’s the Roger Rabbit approach to Toons and humans, complete with a cameo by Roger himself. Apparently, success put a strain on Chip and Dale’s legendary partnership, but when one of their friends goes missing, there’s no way they won’t reunite to save the day.
One of the most jarring changes is that Chip and Dale’s infamously squeaky voices have been replaced by the relatively normal vocals of John Mulaney as Chip and Andy Samberg as Dale. Additionally, Dale has apparently gone in for a CGI conversion, which must be the equivalent of a Hollywood face-lift. However, the rest of the former Rescue Rangers are still in their traditional animated incarnations.
KiKi Layne, Will Arnett, Eric Bana, Flula Borg, Dennis Haysbert, Keegan-Michael Key, Tress MacNeille, Tim Robinson, Seth Rogen, J.K. Simmons, and Chris Parnell will also lend their voices to the movie. However, Disney+ has yet to officially announce who they will portray.
The Lonely Island’s Akiva Schaffer directed Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers from a script by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, and a story by Barry Schwartz. It will premiere on Disney+ on May 20.
