Elizabeth Banks has said that she felt a lot of empathy with Pam, the "quick-witted matriarch" mallard duck she voices in new animated film Migration.
The film tells the story of the Mallards, a paddling of ducks who decide to leave the pond they have called home for years and venture out into the wild blue yonder to find their way to sunnier climes in the Caribbean.
Speaking to RTÉ Entertainment via Zoom, Banks, who has previously starred in the Hunger Games and Pitch Perfect franchises and directed cult hit Cocaine Bear in Ireland in 2022, said, "I think I bring a lot of my essence to Pam and we were encouraged to do so.
"I read her on the page and thought, I like this lady. She's got bigger dreams than just the pond and she also has two kids that she needs to get out of the house every day and that is very similar to me."
Migration also stars Keegan Michael-Key as Delroy, a homesick Jamaican parrot locked away in a Manhattan restaurant, who guides the Mallards down south and Awkwafina as Chump, a plucky little pigeon who helps the family out of a few tight spots in New York.
Kumail Nanjiani plays Mack, the risk-adverse father of the Mallards who is not so keen on leaving the pond. He’s homebody who is very reluctant to spread his wings and discover the world.
"Yeah, I think the pond is great," Nanjiani, who also stars in the upcoming Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, told RTÉ Entertainment. "Why would you want to leave the pond? I mean, it’s beautiful! Everything you need is there . . . these are direct lines from the movie, by the way! The pond is calm, it’s idyllic, there are no predators there . . . yeah, I like being inside. I’m a real inside person."
And just like Mack, Banks and her co-star and on-screen duck hubby have both had to drag themselves out of their comfort zones.
"Workwise, I’ve had to for sure but I try to avoid physical peril," says Nanjiani. "Emotional peril I’m ok with because sometimes you have to go to places you’re not comfortable going to, and that’s part of the exciting challenge of it but I have never broken a bone in my life and I want to keep it that way."
Banks shot Cocaine Bear, the comedy about a female grizzly who goes bonkers after ingesting a load of smuggled A-class drugs, on location in Wicklow and she says she managed to avoid any scrapes and bruises on the shoot.
"I didn’t when I was making that movie but afterwards I went on a ski trip and I broke my knee," she says.
"I just broke the top of my knee but then like seven weeks later, it was OK. I had to make a deal with my doctor - he said you really need to be on crutches and I said it’s never going to happen.
"I didn’t drive myself because it was my right leg and I didn’t go up and down the stairs but I didn’t use crutches a lot."
Migration, which also stars Denny DeVito as Mack's curmudgeonly and adventure-averse uncle, is certainly a beautiful looking movie and boasts very naturalistic and painterly animation.
"It is computer-generated but it was done beautifully and it has a lot of personality and our director Benjamin Renner, all his other work is gorgeous and this one is too," says Nanjiani.
"It feels sort of painted, there’s a real point of view feel to it and I find a lot of animated movies, CGI-animated movies, look a little bit generic but I think this one is very special."
Banks adds, "My friend my saying that when she watched it, she really felt like she was on a ride. Something they were really trying to accomplish was this feeling that you were really flying with the birds and you really do feel that and they’re really done a beautiful job. It’s a gorgeous film."
Migration is in cinemas this Thursday
