When an animated film is made, the film's stars often see very little of each other. Much of the work takes place in isolated sound booths, without the benefit of actor-to-actor interactions and as a result, there's not much opportunity to develop chemistry among a cast. If that was the case with Alec Baldwin and Chris Pine, who star in "Rise of the Guardians," you'd never know. TODAY's Ann Curry sat down with the pair at the Cannes Film Festival, and the two poked fun at each other about meeting for the first time.
"When I met Chris it was like 'what is it with guys like this?'" Baldwin joked. "And I'm, like, 'God, I hate you.'"
Pine told his side of the story, saying he had some nerves. "First of all, I had never done an animated film before, so that was one thing. I'd never met Alec before. I was a big fan," Pine said. " Like any fan, you -- you know, you're -- there's that first moment to take in the fact that this is the guy that I've watched for many, many years do many, many different things."
Pine stopped short of making a reference to Baldwin's age, but did proceed to pretend to turn up a phantom hearing aid in Baldwin's ear.
As for the film itself, "Rise of the Guardians" tells the story of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy, and their ability to protect kids' imaginations. Baldwin plays Santa, but don't expect your typical jolly old St. Nick. "My character is a woodworker in an unspecified Eastern European or Russian mountain somewhere," Baldwin said. "I thought it was very clever how they made this guy someone he wasn't -- just jolly and sweet. He has a bit of an edge to him."
"Rise of the Guardians" premiered at Cannes, and is due to open in theaters Nov. 21, 2012.
Will you see "Rise of the Guardians" to catch more banter from Baldwin and Pine? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.
Related content: