Watch Taika Waititi, Chris Hemsworth, Meryl Streep, and More Read JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH for Charity
James and the Giant Peach was my absolute favorite book as a kid. I read it many times, and it always took me away to a place of whimsy up above the ocean inside the gigantic peach with a young boy named James and his giant insect friends. It’s such a magical story, and I could always just taste the peach juice in the way author Roald Dahl described it. It’s a lovely memory, and now actor and director Taiki Waititi has teamed with Partners In Health and many of his friends from Hollywood to bring the story to life for many more.
Taika Waititi has recruited many fellow actors to remotely read from the wonderful book James and the Giant Peach. The first two episodes have been released online, and will continue each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The full line-up of celebrities includes:
Utkarsh Ambudkar, Cate Blanchett, Jamie Cullum, Benedict Cumberbatch, Roman Griffin Davis, Cara Delevingne, Cynthia Erivo, Beanie Feldstein, Josh Gad, Chris Hemsworth, Liam Hemsworth, Mindy Kaling, Nick Kroll, Kumail Nanjiani, Lupita Nyong’o, Sarah Paulson, Billy Porter, Gordon Ramsay, Eddie Redmayne, Ryan Reynolds, Ben Schwartz, Meryl Streep, Tessa Thompson, Olivia Wilde, Ruth Wilson, and Archie Yates.
Waititi said of the project:
“Being an adult child myself and having read James and the Giant Peach to my girls multiple times, I’m excited to be able to partner with my friends, the Dahl team and Partners In Health and re-tell this story to help those most in need right now. This wacky, wonderful tale is about resilience in children, triumph over adversity, and dealing with a sense of isolation which couldn’t be more relevant today.”
And Ophelia Dahl, Roald Dahl’s daughter, who is Founder of Partners In Health, added:
“My dad instilled in us as kids the notion that imagination will spark a chain reaction of possibilities — we can dream endlessly about ideas and make them real. This early training meant it was not such a leap to envision Partners in Health with my friends. Roald was one of our earliest and most enthusiastic supporters and never let me leave for Haiti without stuffing a massive wad of cash in my hand to put towards the next project. You can see from his stories that he always supported the most vulnerable and those excluded from opportunity. PIH was the perfect match…We’re so grateful to Taika Waititi and the Roald Dahl Story Company for pulling together this extraordinary initiative and amazing array of talent. It will undoubtedly help in the fight against the long-standing health inequities we see in many parts of the world. Thank you for your generosity.”
Check out the first two episodes below, and keep an eye out for the rest. Enjoy!
via: /film