Paul McCartney’s ‘High in the Clouds’ Sets Powerhouse Voice Cast With Céline Dion, Himesh Patel, Lionel Richie, Ringo Starr, Jimmy Fallon and Idris Elba (EXCLUSIVE)

Celine Dion, Himesh Patel and Hannah Waddingham will lead the voice cast of “High in the Clouds,” Paul McCartney’s anticipated 3D animated film which Gaumont (“Ballerina”) is producing and repping internationally.

Inspired by the children’s adventure book by Paul McCartney, Geoff Dunbar and Philip Ardagh, “High in the Clouds” will also bring together Idris Elba, Lionel Richie, Ringo Starr, Jimmy Fallon, Clémence Poésy, Pom Klementieff and Alain Chabat.

Celebrated independent animation filmmaker Toby Genkel (“The Amazing Maurice”) is directing the feature, from a script by Jon Crocker (“Paddington 2”), and production design by Patrick Hanenberger (“Rise of the Guardians,” “Lego Movie 2”).

Gaumont has already pre-sold “High in the Clouds” to top distributors in major territories, including the U.K. (Sky UK Ltd.), German-speaking territories (Constantin Film), Eastern Europe (Vertical/Monolith/AQS), Latin America (Imagem), CIS (Mint Films), Middle East (Four Star), South-East Asia/Taiwan/HK (A Really Good Film), Greece (Tanweer), Portugal (Cinemundo), Israel (Lev) and Baltics (Acme).

A tale about the power of family and freedom of expression through music, “High in the Clouds” follows Wirral, a teenage squirrel who embarks on an extraordinary journey to set music free, after accidentally sparks a revolution against Gretsch, the bossy diva-owl who has banned all music from his town.

“High in the Clouds” will also boast original songs written and composed by McCartney; Oscar winner Michael Giacchino (“Ratatouille, Up,” “Inside Out,” “Coco”) will score the feature. The original soundtrack is set to be released by Universal Music Group.

The film is produced by Paul McCartney at MPL Communications, Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne at Unique Features, and by Sidonie Dumas, Nicolas Atlan, and Terry Kalagian for Gaumont, in association with MPL Communications, Michele Anthony and David Blackman for Polygram Entertainment, Lemoko Investments, Sky, and James L Nederlander Productions.

Gaumont Animation is producing the feature and partnering with the creative team at 88 Pictures (“The Bad Guys: A Very Bad Holiday”), who is in charge of key animation elements of the film.

Gaumont’s track record in animation include “Ballerina” which it co-produced and distributed, and turned out to be a major hit in France and overseas in 2017.