Pharrell Williams will join the cast of the animated version of Dr. Seuss' 'The Grinch'.

Pharrell Williams

Pharrell Williams

The 45-year-old singer will be teaming up with Illumination and Universal Pictures once again - following the monster success of the 2013 film 'Despicable Me 2' which used the Oscar-nominated song 'Happy' - to voice the role of narrator in the upcoming animated flick, based on the 1957 tale by Dr. Seuss.

Grammy nominee Tyler, the Creator has written and performed an original song called 'I Am the Grinch' for the motion picture and will collaborate with Danny Elfman who has written the film's score.

The 27-year-old rapper and the Oscar-nominated composer have also collaborated on a re-imagined version of the classic Grinch theme 'You're A Mean One.'

Benedict Cumberbatch will also star in the new film, with the 39-year-old actor lending his voice to the lead character in the animated movie, which is slated for a November 10, 2018 release.

Speaking at CinemaCon, Chris Meledandri, the CEO of Illumination Entertainment, said: "Choosing the actor to voice The Grinch, we were determined to make a choice that would not only define this version of The Grinch as absolutely singular, but most importantly, we were looking for a voice to express comedic wickedness while embodying vulnerability. It is that vulnerability that allows us to create a character that is not only highly entertaining, but also has an irresistible appeal."

And Chris is keen for the animated movie to be both "modern and traditional" and has revealed the team have taken inspiration from the original book by Ted Geisel.

He added to Deadline: "What we've set out to do with this telling of the Grinch is make it both modern and traditional at the same time. When I say that I mean from a traditional standpoint, we've really tried to go back to what we perceive as the essence of what Ted Geisel was communicating.

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