Illumination Is ‘Going Back To Originality’ Says CEO Meledandri, With New Feature ‘Not Alone’

Illumination has revealed the first details and a new poster for Not Alone, an original animated feature set to arrive in theaters on April 16, 2027.

Not Alone marks a return to original filmmaking for Illumination, whose recent slate, aside from Migration, has been dominated by established franchises such as Despicable Me, Sing, and The Super Mario Bros.

Speaking with Cartoon Brew following the announcement, Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri said the project’s significance lies in both its originality and its creative leadership.

“The big story there is that we’re going back to originality,” Meledandri told us during a conversation in Annecy. “And it’s a homegrown directing team coming right out of the studio.”

The film is directed by Illumination veterans Eric Guillon, Claire Dodgson, and Jonathan Del Val. Guillon previously co-directed Despicable Me 3 and served as a designer on many of the studio’s biggest productions, while Dodgson and Del Val worked on films including Minions: The Rise of Gru, The Lorax, and The Secret Life of Pets 2.

The film is headlined by Timothée Chalamet, who plays Joe, an introverted rocket mechanic who lives a quiet life alone, and Selena Gomez, who voices Fran, a brilliant astro-botanist who is developing the world’s first-ever plant-fueled rocket.

Illumination’s official synopsis reads:

When Joe and Fran are brought together to prepare for the inaugural launch of this revolutionary rocket, there are immediate sparks, but neither is particularly adept at romance.

Life becomes more complicated when three aliens — tiny, unruly and adorable — take refuge in Joe’s home. Dunk, Welly and Shirm are on the interplanetary run from a zealous-yet-inept officer of the law named Zandro. The aliens determine that Fran’s rocket could provide their means of getting back home to safety.

The supporting voice cast includes Brett Goldstein, Rob Brydon, Diane Morgan, Jamie Demetriou, Allison Janney, and Lamorne Morris.