Typical for the House of Mouse, Disney is pulling together an all-star cast to lend their voices to the upcoming South of the Border. Hollywood Reporter has announced that Drew Barrymore will lead a vocal cast that also includes Andy Garcia, Salma Hayek, and George Lopez.
What’s that? You haven’t heard of an upcoming animated feature named South of the Border? That’s because it isn’t animated. The movie is a live action story from Scooby Doo director Raja Gosnell, about a spoiled Chihuahua who is used to being toted around in Paris Hilton’s purse. When Paris goes to prison, the dog is forced to exist on her own.
Okay – part of that is wrong. There is no Paris Hilton, although maybe there should be. The story is about a pampered Chihuahua named Chloe who gets lost while on vacation in Mexico. Separated from her spoiled lifestyle, Chloe (Drew Barrymore) must depend on her friends to get back home again.
Barrymore seems like a bizarre choice considering the dog is a Chihuahua amongst a cast of Latin-American actors. At least Garcia is playing a German Shepherd – something a little more appropriate. By comparison, George Lopez plays another Chihuahua – consider it the love interest of the movie (only in a movie like this could Lopez and Barrymore be a couple). Salma Hayek plays Chloe’s spirit guide, responsible for helping Chloe discover her lost heritage. Other talent includes Cheech Marin, Paul Rodriguez, Placido Domingo, and Edward James Olmos.
No word on when we might expect South of the Border, but I’d guess some filming has already been done if they’ve moved to vocal work on the movie. Piper Perabo had already been announced as a human in the movie (Chloe’s owner) so presumably she’s been at work for a little while.
