Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show creator Seth MacFarlane will make the jump from television to feature films this year as he brings his particular brand of humour to the big screen for the $65m-budgeted live-action comedy Ted. The film stars Mark Wahlberg (Contraband) as thirty-something Bostonian John Bennett who – as a child – made a wish that his favourite teddy bear (voiced by MacFarlane) would come to life, only to see said wish come true. John remains best friends with his cuddly companion into adulthood, but when he comes to move in with his girlfriend Lori (Mila Kunis; Black Swan), John finds his happiness threatened by Ted’s foul-mouth, recreational drug use and general inappropriate behaviour.
In addition to lending his voice to the CG-animated Ted, MacFarlane also serves as director and co-writer alongside Family Guy regulars Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild. Family Guy alumni such as Laura Vandervoort (Smallville), Ralph Garman (Red State), Patrick Warburton (Get Smart) and Jessica Stroup (Prom Night) also feature in the cast, while other supporting players include Joel McHale (Spider-Man 2) and Giovanni Ribisi (Avatar). Take a look at the first ‘red band’ trailer, which made its way online earlier today…
Ted is set for release in North America on July 13th and hits UK cinemas on August 3rd.