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Apple TV+ original animated Earth Day film voiced by Meryl Streep; Julia Louis-Dreyfus signs content deal

Apple usually comes up with creative ways to celebrate Earth Day each spring and this year, it’s going to release an original animated film starring the voice of Meryl Streep based on the children’s book, Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers.

Apple has also signed Julia Louis-Dreyfus to a content deal for upcoming TV+ properties.

Louis-Dreyfus agreement

Under the multi-year agreement, Louis-Dreyfus will develop new projects exclusively for Apple TV+ as both an executive producer and star. The deal marks her first-ever overall deal with a streaming service.

“I am thrilled about this new partnership with my friends at Apple,” said Louis-Dreyfus. “Also, many thanks and kudos to my representatives for structuring the deal in such a way that I am paid in AirPods.”

Streep project

Streep is set to narrate the film and here are the other talented actors involved in the project:

Today Apple announced Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning Meryl Streep will lead the award-winning talent lending their voices to the Apple original animated Earth Day short film, “Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth,” premiering April 17 exclusively on Apple TV+. Joining Streep are Emmy Award-winning and BAFTA-nominated Chris O’Dowd (“Girls,” “State of the Union”), SAG Award nominee and Critic’s Choice Award-winning Jacob Tremblay (“Room,” “Wonder”), and Oscar nominee Ruth Negga (“Loving,” “Ad Astra”).

Apple’s original animated feature film is slated to run 36 minutes and will be released on April 17th on Apple TV+, just under a week before the 50th Earth Day.

Here’s how Apple describes the film:

In celebration of Earth Day, this captivating animated film follows a precocious seven-year-old (voiced by Tremblay) who, over the course of Earth Day, learns about the wonders of the planet from his parents (voiced by O’Dowd and Negga) — and from a mysterious exhibit at the aptly titled Museum of Everything. The insightful and poignant short film is narrated by Streep.

It’s nice to see Apple leveraging its streaming service to spread the word about living more sustainably.

Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers is a #1 New York Times bestseller and also won Best Book of 2017 from NPR and the Boston Globe.

Here’s what Publisher’s Weekly said about the book:

Moments of human intimacy jostle with scenes that inspire cosmic awe, and the broad diversity of Jeffers’s candy-colored humans…underscores the twin messages that ‘You’re never alone on Earth’ and that we’re all in this together.

It will be neat to see Apple’s creative take on the book with its animated feature film.

Here are some of the fun ways Apple celebrated Earth Day over the years:

Another Apple TV+ debut set for spring

More Apple TV+ news today is the announcement of a new docuseries called Dear… which is scheduled to launch sometime this spring. Here’s a description of Dear… from executive producer R.J. Cutler:

Inspired by Apple’s “Dear Apple” spots, “Dear…” takes an “inventive and cinematic approach to biographies of the most iconic figures in society today by using letters written by those whose lives have been changed through their work,” said the streamer. The first season, which will launch globally this spring on the service, will consist of 10 episodes that profile internationally recognized leaders including Oprah Winfrey, Gloria Steinem, Spike Lee, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Yara Shahidi, Stevie Wonder, Aly Raisman, Misty Copeland, Big Bird and more.

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Avatar for Michael Potuck Michael Potuck

Michael is an editor for 9to5Mac. Since joining in 2016 he has written more than 3,000 articles including breaking news, reviews, and detailed comparisons and tutorials.