The Emperor's New Groove (Live-Action Film)

The Emperor's New Groove is an upcoming 2020 American musical fantasy adventure film directed by Guy Ritchie and Jon Favreau, from the screenplay co-written with John August, written by Justin Marks, and produced by Walt Disney Pictures. It is a live-action adaptation of Disney's 2000 animated film. The film stars Taylor Lautner, Christopher Swindle, John Cena, Michelle Pfeiffer, Nasim Pedrad and Chris Brown.

From the directors that brought you: Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast and The Jungle Book.

Plot
Kuzco and his unnamed father; The King (Rob Lowe) rule over the kingdom of Inca Empire, which is filled with music, fun, laughter and treated royalty. The citizens, including Kuzco's childhood friends; young Pacha and his love interest; Chicha, are shown relaxing in a huge village of Machu Picchu in Peru, and Kuzco showed his "prized-treasured" father the design of a enormous dream summer home called Kuzcotopia, much to his father's pride. Suddenly, an unexpected illness approach to the King's body and he slowly dies much after spending time with Kuzco (including the citizens of Peru and the other citizens of Inca Empire) and drinking the tea, given by his head advisor; Yzma. Eighteen years passed, devastated by his father's death, Kuzco now becomes the new emperor and the new ruler of Inca Empire, with his spoiled and selfish attitude approach, and was soon brought up by Yzma (Michelle Pfeiffer).

One day, he callously fires her for attempting to run the kingdom while he is preoccupied, infuriating her. He then summons Pacha (Christopher Swindle), now became the head village leader of Peru, to inform him that he is building Kuzcotopia (in honor of his father), on the site of Pacha's house. Pacha attempts to protest that Kuzco should not do this, and then was dismissed, while Kuzco tells him to watch him the next day. Meanwhile, an ancient and power-hungry Yzma, along with her easily-distracted assistant; Kronk (John Cena), attempts to poison Kuzco so that she can take full and permanent control of the Inca Empire.

Yzma invites Kuzco to a "farewell" dinner and he drinks the poison, which supposedly kills him. However, he is still alive and suddenly, his ears become those of a llama. Soon, his neck stretches, his hands turn into hooves, and his face turns into a snout. Yzma orders Kronk to knock the transformed Kuzco unconscious and discovers that the supposed "poison" was actually a potion that turned him into a llama. Yzma orders Kronk to dispose of him, but conscience-stricken Kronk loses the sack holding Kuzco.

Meanwhile, Pacha returns home from the Inca palace and Chicha, who became Pacha's wife, was shown with a newborn son; Yupi while the children; Tipo and Chaca both embrace their father. Tipo tells him that he ate a bug today and Pacha makes a joke and asks if Chicha was baking again, but then tells him to not tell her he said that, but she heard that and accepts the joke without hard feelings and laughs and then kisses her husband. She then reminds her children that their deal was they two can stay awake until their father came home, but they please Pacha to stay out of beds a bit more. With a wink of his eye (apparently at Chicha), he says that they can stay and watch as he and Chicha will sitting and telling each other how much they love each other, and Chicha prepares to kiss him again, and the kids run to their beds, disgusted, just as Chicha and Pacha planned.

Chicha then asks Pacha what did Kuzco wanted. Pacha, with Yupi in his arms, refused to tell her that Kuzco told him that their house and the village will be destroyed so on its place can come to Kuzcotopia, and just only said that he couldn't see him. However, this just makes Chicha angry because she thinks Kuzco has to have respect for the people who come to see him. only

She says that if she were Pacha she would demand to see Kuzco and accidentally gets too much wrought upon, which is bad because used to be pregnant 27 months ago longtime after their marriage. Pacha reminds her about Yupi (who is feeling concerned and curious to see and hear what it is happening), but Chicha said that Yupi is not scared at all, but even though if he is or not, she'd still give Kuzco a piece of her mind, and snorts in anger. To calm herself down, she goes to wash some dishes. After washing, she takes a sleeping Yupi upstairs and notices that Pacha looks sad (which is because his house will be destroyed) and asks if he is all right, and he says that he is just tired from the trip. She believes him.

A little later that night, Kuzco, after waking up, ends up in Pacha's village, accuses Pacha of kidnapping him and demands that Pacha help him return back to the palace. Pacha refuses unless Kuzco builds his summer home somewhere else, and Kuzco refuses and attempts to find his own way back home, despite Pacha's warnings about the jungle. He ends up surrounded by a pack of jaguars, only to be saved by Pacha. Meanwhile, Yzma assumes command of the nation, but when Kronk reveals he never killed Kuzco, the two head out and begin to search the local villages for him.

Kuzco feigns agreement with Pacha's demand, and Pacha leads him back toward the palace. On their way across a bridge Pacha falls through a weak plank. Kuzco refuses to help him as he says that he was going to put Pacha in prison for life but this was better. Pacha then yells at Kuzco saying that they shook hands on it. Kuzco replies to him that he needs hands to do that and that Kuzco has no hands. Kuzco then falls through a plank like Pacha did and he and Pacha, still feeling annoyed by Kuzco's ego and not finding out why he became spoiled, start fighting. The bridge shortly snaps and falls. Kuzco and Pacha fall down the cliff and end up stuck at the bottom.

Working together, they climb up the cliff to reach the rope to pull themselves up the cliff. While climbing, Pacha grabs the rope, but it is stuck on a branch which scorpions then fall off onto Kuzco and he gets scared and falls. Pacha swiftly grabs Kuzco and Kuzco's face gets stuck in a hole. The scorpions then climb up onto Pacha's back. Pacha gets scared and smacks his back onto the wall.

This wakes up some bats in the wall with Kuzco that then attack Kuzco and launch him off. Kuzco, scared runs up the wall with Pacha and they land back on the cliff. After laughing about it, the cliff side Pacha is on begins to fall, and Kuzco swiftly saves him by grabbing onto his poncho and launching him back.

Pacha finds out that Kuzco is starting to change his ways no matter how much Kuzco denies it. Pacha then says they should start going as it's a four-day walk to the palace without a bridge. Kuzco then questions Pacha about this and Pacha says that he shook hands on it and he will still take Kuzco back. Meanwhile Yzma and Kronk are in the jungle looking for Kuzco, and after getting chased by bees, Yzma meets Bucky and screams at him. Bucky gets scared and runs to Kronk and they start talking.

Yzma is mad only until Kronk translates that Bucky said a talking llama gave him trouble. After asking him for Yzma, Kronk finds out where Kuzco went, and he and Yzma head off. Meanwhile, Kuzco and Pacha are walking, with lowing their blood sugars, until they found a roadside diner, and decide to eat there with Kuzco dressed as Pacha's bride since llamas are not allowed in. After Kuzco goes to talk to the chef about the food, Pacha begins to eat until Yzma and Kronk arrive shortly after and he overhears Yzma discussing their plans to kill Kuzco, and he, after an unexpected talk with Kronk behind, goes to Kuzco and attempts to warn him. Throughout the visit, neither party knows that the other is there.

Kuzco, convinced Yzma is loyal, berates Pacha, refusing to change his mind and returns to Yzma, only to overhear her and Kronk discussing that they are seeking to kill him, and that the kingdom doesn't miss him. Kuzco realizes Pacha was telling the truth, but Pacha has angrily, but emotionally left.

The next day, after a repentant Kuzco spends the night alone in the jungle with Pacha's remaining poncho and hat, he then hears a tune of his father's favorite song, much to his amazement while brimming in tears (feeling like how much Kuzco misses his father since years ago), sang by Pacha, apologizes for not listening to him and he and Pacha reunited and forgive each other. After becoming friends again, Kuzco and Pacha both race back to Pacha's house to get some supplies.

While going up, two old men tell Pacha that his "relatives" came by, but it turns out to be Yzma and Kronk. Pacha warns Chicha in private. Chicha, Tipo, Chaca and Yupi then launch Yzma down the hill, who ends up looking like a pinata. Yzma then sees Kuzco and Pacha, both chuckling at her behind, running off. She then tells Kronk, and shortly, he and Yzma race back to the palace after Kuzco and Pacha. Yzma and Kronk chase them until the pursuers get hit by lightning and fall into a chasm.

Kuzco and Pacha arrive at the palace and found Yzma's laboratory, but only to find that their pursuers somehow got there first (by a method which, humorously, not even they know), making Kuzco find out that Yzma had poisoned his father years ago, much to Pacha's shock and apologizes to Kuzco for not understanding him before, in which Kuzco forgives him with a smile. Yzma then passes Kronk a knife to finish the duo off. Kronk becomes stricken with doubt as his angel and devil appear on his shoulders and converses with them, to the confusion of everyone else. Kronk changes sides after a vicious tongue-lashing from Yzma, and attempted to drop a chandelier on her, but her thin body enables her to escape harm. In retaliation, she drops him down a trap door. Yzma then summons the palace guards, forcing Kuzco and Pacha to swiftly grab all of the transformation vials they can and flee.

After trying several formulas that convert Kuzco to other animals, and then back to a llama, they escape the guards (but not Yzma) and find they are down to only two vials left. Yzma lunges onto Kuzco, but accidentally lands on one of the two, turning herself into a tiny lavender kitten. A struggle ensues, and Pacha dangles from a ledge after losing balance. Kuzco has then grown a conscience, still remembering his father's song before and saves Pacha. Yzma still almost manages to obtain the antidote, but is thwarted by the sudden reappearance of Kronk, who had discovered the trap door window, smacking Yzma with it and Pacha grabs the antidote, much to his and Kuzco's joy and prides.

After drinking the antidote, Kuzco finally becomes human again, apologizing to all the citizens of Inca, including the peasants of Peru for not telling the truth years ago, which they all forgive him, and sets out to redeem himself, building a smaller summer cabin on the hill next to Pacha's home. Meanwhile, outdoorsman Kronk, who now become Kuzco and Pacha's new friend, becomes a scout leader, with kitten-Yzma forced to be a member of the troop, much to Kronk's pride.

Casts

 * Taylor Lautner as Kuzco, the selfish emperor of the Inca Empire. He initially is narcissistic, arrogant and cruel, and pays no heed to the needs of others long after his father died years ago, which unknown before by Yzma. However, after being transformed into a llama and bonding with Pacha, he slowly becomes a kinder person and learn his lesson
 * Neel Sethi as Young Kuzco (uncredited)
 * Rob Lowe as Kuzco's Father, the ruler and an emperor of the Inca Empire, who had died in an unexpected illness after drinking a poison tea, without noticing
 * Mageina Tovah as Kuzco's Mother, the queen of the Inca Empire, who had died after giving birth to Kuzco in the beginning of the film (uncredited)
 * Michelle Pfeiffer as Yzma, Kuzco's ex-advisor who claims that she "practically raised him". Her appearance is described as "scary beyond all reason" and "living proof that dinosaurs once roamed the earth." She is also incredibly vain, arrogant, manipulative, diabolical, self-serving and also the one who killed Kuzco's father with a poison tea
 * Charlize Theron as Yzma, in her young suitor in the beginning of the film (uncredited)
 * John Cena as Kronk, Yzma's dimwitted and muscular henchman. Despite working for her, he is very kind and good-natured. Kronk is a talented chef and has the ability to communicate with squirrels. His moral dilemmas manifest themselves in the form of an angel and devil that appear on his shoulders
 * Anthony Gonzalez as Teenage Kronk (uncredited)
 * Chris Brown as the Theme Song Guy, Kuzco's personal theme song conductor
 * Christopher Swindle as Pacha, a kind, caring village leader who apparently foils Kuzco and was the one who remembers the song of Kuzco's father. Despite Kuzco's ego, he befriends and trusts him, and believes that he is capable of being a kinder person, and he is also Kuzco's childhood friend
 * Emjay Anthony as Young Pacha (uncredited)
 * Nasim Pedrad as Chicha, Pacha's wife and Kuzco's second childhood friend, who gives birth to her third child; a son named "Yupi" in the film
 * Mary Gibbs as Young Chicha (uncredited)
 * Sunny Pawar as Tipo, Pacha and Chicha's young, rambunctious son
 * Jenny Ortega as Chaca, Pacha and Chicha's second young, rambunctious daughter and Tipo's older sister
 * Jill Talley as Matta, the waitress of at Mudka's Meat Hut
 * Christopher Walken as Rudy, a kindly old man who meets and befriends Kuzco
 * Donald Glover as The Red Peasant, who thumbs up at Pacha in the restaurant (uncredited)
 * Tori Kelly as Ms. Birdwell, Kronk's love interest and Kuzco and Pacha's friend as shown in the end of the movie (uncredited)

Trivia

 * Rated PG for very mild threat, violence, peril.
 * Suggested Running Times: 130 Minutes (NTSC), 125 Minutes (PAL).
 * The "Disney" logo (similar to the original Disney Pixar intro) was reused for the movie, where the palace of Inca Empire (Kuzco's home) zooms out during the opening credits after "Fairview Entertainment" logo.
 * The opening music is very similar to "Charlotte's Web (2006)".
 * Yupi's voice was portrayed by Tabitha St. Germain, with Flurry Heart's laughs and coos are reused from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (2010-2019), and soon later portrayed by Mary Gibbs, with some of Boo's squeals and coos are reused from Monsters, Inc.
 * The jungle scene/backdrop was reuse from The Jungle Book (2016 film).
 * Jill Talley, who had voiced Karen in Spongebob Squarepants, portrays herself as Matta in the film.

Songs

 * 1)  "You Can Count on Me" (recycled demo song from Disney's Aladdin) - Rob Lowe
 * 2)  "Perfect World" - Chris Brown
 * 3)  "Perfect World (Yzma's reprise)" - Michelle Pfeiffer and John Cena
 * 4)  "You Can Count on Me (reprise)" - Taylor Lautner and Christopher Swindle
 * 5)  "Perfect World (finale)" - Chris Brown
 * 6)  "Let's Groove (B5 version)" (song reused from Kronk's New Groove) - Taylor Lautner, Christopher Swindle, John Cena and casts
 * 7)  "My Funny Friend and Me"