The Secret Life of Pets 2 was theatrically released in the United States on June 7, 2019. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the animation and humor but criticized the plot. It grossed $446 million worldwide against its production budget of $80 million, making less than its predecessor,[4] but still turning a profit.[6] A third film is in development.
Plot
Sometime after the events of the first film, Max and Duke's owner, Katie, marries a man named Chuck and have a son, Liam, of whom Max refuses and disapproves at first. Max's overprotective feelings for Liam develop into an itch that prompts Katie to get him a dog cone from the veterinarian in an effort to lower his symptoms. Max's luck changes when Duke reveals that the family is going on a road trip.
When they reach a farm owned by Chuck's uncle, Max is at first unaccustomed to the farm's ways. Local Welsh Sheepdog Rooster tells him to get over his insecurities about Liam and ditches his dog cone. After an incident with the farm's sheep, Rooster takes Max to find Cotton, one of the sheep that ran away. Rooster's encouragement about acting unafraid prompts Max to retrieve Cotton off a falling tree, earning Rooster's respect.
Before Max left, he entrusted his favorite toy, Busy Bee, to Gidget. However, Gidget loses Busy Bee in a cat-infested apartment owned by a cat lady. She gets cat lessons from Chloe in order to sneak into the apartment more easily. Then, with Norman's help, she retrieves Busy Bee and unintentionally gets hailed as the "queen of cats".
Meanwhile, Snowball, who dreams of being a superhero, meets Shih Tzu Daisy, who explains that she needs help to rescue Hu, a white tiger she met on an airplane. Hu is being held captive by an abusive circus owner named Sergei. Daisy and Snowball sneak into the circus, and in spite of Sergei's pack of black wolves, they free Hu. However, during the escape, Daisy loses her flower clip, which the wolves use to track her down.
Daisy and Snowball take Hu to Pops' apartment first; Pops reluctantly lets Hu stay, but after destroying the apartment, Hu is kicked out the next day and relocated to Max and Duke's apartment. Around the same time, the family returns from the farm. Sergei and his wolves track down Daisy and capture her and Hu. Sergei escapes in a train. Snowball, Max, and Norman pursue him and contact Gidget for assistance. Gidget, Max's friends, and the cats take their owner off in her car, in pursuit of the train.
Max takes out the wolves and Snowball fires Sergei's pet monkey out of a cannon, while freeing Daisy. The monkey lands on Max, knocking him off the train. Max, using his newfound bravery, jumps back onto the train from the top of a tunnel. The other animals free Hu and kick Sergei out of the train but before they can escape, Sergei holds them at gunpoint. Gidget and the rest of the pets arrive, knock him out with the cat lady's car and offer the animals a ride back home. Life resumes normally, with Hu finding a new home with the cat lady, and Max sending Liam off to preschool, no longer worried for him.
Louis C.K. was planned to reprise his role as Max, but after being accused of and later admitting to sexual misconduct with several women in November 2017, C.K. was dropped from the sequel.[14]Patton Oswalt took over for C.K. as Max the following year in April, while Jenny Slate, Kevin Hart, Eric Stonestreet, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Tara Strong, Hannibal Buress, and Bobby Moynihan reprised their roles. Additional casting includes Tiffany Haddish, Nick Kroll, Harrison Ford and Pete Holmes.[15]
The Secret Life of Pets 2 was released in the United States on June 7, 2019 by Universal Pictures.[17] It was previously set for a July 13, 2018 release,[11] and then July 3, 2019.[12] The film was released in the United Kingdom two weeks earlier on May 24.[18]
The Secret Life of Pets 2 grossed $159 million in the United States and Canada, and $287.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $446.2 million, against a production budget of $80 million.[4][5]Deadline Hollywood calculated the net profit of the film to be $118million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues.[6]
In the United States and Canada, the film was released alongside Dark Phoenix and was initially projected to gross around $60 million in its opening weekend. The film played in 4,561 theaters, the second-widest release ever at the time.[21] After making $17.4 million on its first day (including $2.2 million from Thursday night previews, down from the first film's $5.3 million), estimates were lowered to $46 million. It went on to debut to $46.7 million,[22] less than half the opening of the first film, but still finishing first at the weekend box office.[23][24] In its second weekend, the film made $24.4 million, finishing second behind newcomer Men in Black: International,[25] and then made $10.3 million in its third weekend, finishing in fifth place.[26]
In the United Kingdom, the film debuted to $4.1 million from 613 theaters on the May 24 weekend.[27] A week later, the film expanded to Russia and added a combined $17.2 million from the two countries.[28]
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 60% based on 164 reviews with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "The Secret Life of Pets 2 doesn't teach its animated stars any new narrative tricks -- but for fans of the original, this funny, energetic sequel should still satisfy."[29] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 55 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[30] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, the same score as the first film, while those at PostTrak gave it an average 4.5 out of 5 stars.[23]
Courtney Howard of Variety magazine wrote: "It's unusual for a typical Illumination broad comedy to include a heartrending message that makes parents feel less alone in their very real, visceral struggles. It's just cloaked in a shenanigans-soaked romp about what pets do when humans aren't looking."[31]James Berardinelli gave the film 2.5 out of 4 stars but called the film "a perfect example of what can happen when a sequel exists simply because its predecessor made a lot of money". He called it "a disappointingly mediocre effort that doesn't have a lot to offer potential viewers over age 10" saying it was unfocused and "essentially three separate shorts connected only by the presence of returning characters".[32]
Emily Davison of UK Film Review called it "a much more enjoyable outing" and said the "voice cast is also strong all around".[33]
^Berardinelli, James (June 7, 2019). "Secret Life of Pets 2, The". Reelviews Movie Reviews. Archived from the original on August 26, 2019. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
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