June 22, 1988
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American live-action/animated comedy mystery film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Frank Marshall and Robert Watts, and loosely adapted by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman from Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?. The film stars Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Charles Fleischer, Stubby Kaye, and Joanna Cassidy. Set in a 1947 version of Hollywood where cartoon characters (commonly referred to as "toons") and humans co-exist, the film follows Eddie Valiant, a private investigator who must exonerate the titular character, who has been framed for the murder of the Acme Corporation's CEO.
Walt Disney Pictures purchased the film rights for the film's story in 1981. Price and Seaman wrote two drafts of the script before Disney brought in executive producer Steven Spielberg and his production company, Amblin Entertainment. Zemeckis was brought on to direct the film while Canadian animator Richard Williams was hired to supervise the animation sequences. Production was moved from Los Angeles to Elstree Studios in England to accommodate Williams and his group of animators. While filming, the production budget began to rapidly expand and the shooting schedule ran longer than expected.
The film was released through Disney's Touchstone Pictures banner on June 22, 1988. It received acclaim from critics, who praised its visuals, humor, writing and performances, with critics and audiences considering it to be "groundbreaking". It grossed $329.8 million worldwide, becoming one of the highest-grossing films in the year. It brought a renewed interest in the Golden age of American animation, spearheading modern American animation and the Disney Renaissance. It won three Academy Awards for Best Film Editing, Best Sound Effects Editing and Best Visual Effects and received a Special Achievement Academy Award for its animation direction by Williams.
In 2016, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Storyline[]
A toon-hating detective is a cartoon rabbit's only hope to prove his innocence when he is accused of murder.