In January, Focus Features announced Piece By Piece, “an unparalleled motion picture experience that captures the magic and brilliance of Pharrell Williams’ creative genius, one LEGO brick at a time.” The movie was directed by Morgan Neville, who won an Oscar for 20 Feet From Stardom, and Focus Features released the official trailer in June.
On Thursday, August 29, Pharrell posted a vibrant Piece By Piece poster packed with LEGO Minifigures. LEGO Kendrick Lamar wears his Crown Of Thorns. In LEGO, Daft Punk are no longer retired. LEGO Gwen Stefani resumes her No Doubt form. LEGO N.O.R.E. tips his “N.O.R.E.” cap.
The previously released trailer revealed that the movie will feature cameos by LEGO versions of Morgan Neville, Gwen Stefani, Kendrick Lamar, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, and Snoop Dogg. Of course, Pharrell also took a break from scoring the Despicable Me franchise to provide new music for his own movie.
“Five years ago, Pharrell Williams approached me with the idea of helping him tell his story through LEGO animation,” Neville said in a statement provided in the original January announcement. “It was one of those rare moments where I knew in a second that this was a journey I wanted to go on. I’m grateful to our partners at Focus Features and at the LEGO Group for their belief in our crazy mission. We assembled an incredible team of creative collaborators to help make a new type of film. I can’t wait for people to see it.”
Pharrell added, “When I had this crazy vision to tell this story through LEGO bricks, I couldn’t have imagined a better partner than Morgan. He is a legend. Grateful that Focus wanted to collaborate with us, and I’m honored to share this with the world and bring people into my universe. Building with LEGO bricks encourages us to follow our imagination… who would’ve thought that playing with these toys as a kid would evolve into a movie about my life? It’s proof that anyone else can do it, too.”
Piece By Piece is exclusively in theaters on October 11. Find more information here.