The Real Reason These Actors Were Cut From A Sequel

In 2000, U.K.-based Aardman Animation, best known for its Academy Award-winning stop-motion animation shorts featuring Wallace and Gromit, branched out into feature films with "Chicken Run." Led by a hen named Ginger and a circus performer rooster named Rocky, the story's slated-for-slaughter chickens stage a plan to literally fly the coop to their freedom. "Chicken Run" was a massive hit — it earned $227 million at the worldwide box office, making it the top-grossing stop-motion animated movie of all time.

English actress Julia Sawalha, probably best known for her role as Saffy on the cult favorite Britcom "Absolutely Fabulous," voiced Ginger in the original "Chicken Run," but was not asked to return when the long-awaited sequel went into production. The reason, according to Sawalha, was ageism. 

"Last week I was informed out of the blue, via email, through my agent that I would not be cast as Ginger in the 'Chicken Run' sequel," Sawalha wrote in an open letter posted to Twitter. "The reason they gave is that my voice now sounds 'too old' and they want a younger actress to reprise the role." Sawalha further noted that she wasn't even given the opportunity to provide a voice test to determine if her voice had indeed changed too much, so she did one herself, and sent it to producers ... who still opted to get someone else to portray Ginger in the 2021 sequel.