The Lego Ninjago Movie with Legendary Jackie Chan Kicks Some Bricks!

Legendary martial arts actor, Jackie Chan, reveals why he voices Master Wu in “The Lego Ninjago Movie.”

The Lego Ninjago Movie Cast at Legoland, CA

Jackie Chan and the voice cast of the upcoming “The Lego Ninjago Movie” kicks some bricks in the next film in the Lego franchise. We were invited to a full day of activities and interviews with the cast at LEGOLAND, CA. in advance of the movie’s release September 22. We also attended a screening of “The Lego Ninjago Movie.” Read my short and no-spoiler review of the movie below.

Jackie Chan with Master Wu at Legoland, CA for The Lego Ninjago Movie press junket.

The star-studded cast was at Legoland, California to promote the movie.  The voice cast includes Dave Franco as Lloyd, Justin Theroux as Garmadon, Olivia Munn as Lloyd’s mom Koko, along with Michael Pena as Kai, Abbi Jacobson as Nya, Fred Armisen as Cole, Kumail Nanjiani as Jay, and Zach Woods as Zane.

The Lego Ninjago Movie cast shows off their Lego arms.

From Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Animation Group, “The Lego Ninjago Movie” is the third film in this franchise, and comes after the success of “The Lego Movie” and “The Lego Batman Movie.”

 Movie Synopsis

In this big-screen NINJAGO adventure, the battle for NINJAGO City calls to action young Master Builder Lloyd, aka the Green Ninja, along with his friends, who are all secret ninja warriors. Led by Master Wu, as wise-cracking as he is wise, they must defeat evil warlord Garmadon, The Worst Guy Ever, who also happens to be Lloyd’s dad. Pitting mech against mech and father against son, the epic showdown will test this fierce but undisciplined team of modern-day ninjas who must learn to check their egos and pull together to unleash their inner power of Spinjitzu.

Each movie in this franchise has introduced its own unique theme. “The Lego Ninjago Movie” is decidedly a movie about martial arts. I won’t spoil the movie for you, but what I can tell you is to expect a lot of non-bloody fighting, kicking and grunting throughout the film. However, there are lessons about friendship and team work built into the story, too. One of the messages of this kid-friendly movie is also a timely one. With back- to-school in full swing, kids will likely relate to Lloyd’s reluctance to go to school.

Olivia Munn provides the voice of Koko. Seen here teaching her black-belt moves to a fan.

Abbi Jacobson with Nya, her character in The Lego Ninjago Movie

An Epic Tale of Good…and Dad.

“High school is a little judgy,” Lloyd tells his mom Koko, the ex-Mrs. Garmadon voiced by Olivia Munn. Lloyd is not a popular kid and it’s his father Garmadon’s fault. The evil Garmadon (Justin Theroux), also known as The Worst Guy in the World, is busy trying to take over the city of Ninjago through a series of surprise attacks. He doesn’t have time to be a real dad to Lloyd or to do dad things with his son. They are also at odds with each other. Lloyd is secretly a ninja and has been training with Master Wu (Jackie Chan). He’s dedicated to protecting his city. On the other hand, Garmadon wants to destroy it. The movie is centered on this father-son conflict. Do they resolve it? You’ll have to see the movie to find out!

Jackie Chan at Legoland, CA promoting The Lego Ninjago Movie

Adding a layer of authenticity to this action-adventure movie, the legendary Jackie Chan breathes life into his Lego counterpart, Master Wu. Wu is Garmadon’s brother and Lloyd’s uncle. “We really want this [movie] to feel like an Asian-inspired martial arts movie, and Jackie was rigorous in overseeing the action and making sure we were doing it in an accurate way,” said producer Dan Lin.

Chan has been acting since he was 8 years old. When asked at the press junket held at Legoland why he took on the character of Master Wu, Chan said “The Lego Ninjago Movie” gave him a unique opportunity to leave a lasting memory with younger fans. “I want kids to know who I am after I pass away,” Chan said.

The lessons martial arts teach kids, are another reason Chan got involved with this movie. “When you know martial arts you respect everybody: your parents, your teachers, and nature,” Chan said.

Justin Theroux (“The Leftovers”) provides the voice of Garmadon. Though the rest of the cast use their normal voices for their characters, Theroux came up with the unique sound of The Worst Guy in the World’s voice. Theroux also came up with the funny way to miss-pronounce Lloyd’s name, and calling him La-Loyd. Though annoying, it shows the distant relationship between father and son — he can’t even pronounce his own son’s name correctly!

Olivia Munn (“X-Men Apocalypse,” “Newsroom”), voices Koko. She brings her own kung-fu expertise to this movie. She studied martial arts from age 5 until she was 16 years old and earned her black belt! But she wasn’t always this self-confident. She admitted to eating lunch in the library in middle school. For those who can related to these emotions, she said that she overcame her insecurities once she accepted who she was. She stopped comparing herself to others. “There will always be someone with a better backpack, or better shoes, or be smarter than you,” she told me at the press conference. This realization helped her become more self-confident.

Besides helping to choreograph action sequences in “The Lego Ninjago Movie,” Jackie Chan wanted to share what he learned from martial arts. “It’s good for your brain and it’s good for your health,” Chan pointed out. The press conference ended with Chan offering this final piece of wisdom to the press core, but especially to the children also present in the auditorium.

“Martial arts teach you how to be good children and respectful.”

“The Lego Ninjago Movie” hits theaters September 22!

Rated PG, for some violence and crude humor.

Runtime 1 hour and 40 minutes

Release Date: September 22, 2017

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