The Emperor's New Groove

Updated: 12/10/2025, 4:40:31 PM Wikipedia source

The Emperor's New Groove is a 2000 American animated comedy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation. It was directed by Mark Dindal and written by David Reynolds, based on a story conceived by Dindal and Chris Williams. The film stars David Spade, John Goodman, Eartha Kitt, Patrick Warburton, and Wendie Malick. Inspired by ancient Peruvian culture and set in an Incan empire, The Emperor's New Groove follows Emperor Kuzco (voiced by Spade), who is accidentally transformed into a llama by his treacherous ex-advisor, Yzma (Kitt), and her dimwitted henchman Kronk (Warburton). For the emperor to change back into a human, he entrusts a village leader, Pacha (Goodman), to escort him back to the palace before Yzma can track them down and finish him off. Development of The Emperor's New Groove began in 1994 when the film was conceived as a musical epic titled Kingdom of the Sun. Following his directorial debut with The Lion King (1994), Roger Allers recruited English musician Sting to compose several songs for the film. Because of the underwhelming box-office performances of Pocahontas (1995) and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Dindal was brought in as co-director to make the film more comedic. Because of poor test screenings, creative differences with Dindal, and production falling behind schedule, Allers departed, and the film became a lighthearted comedy in the vein of a Chuck Jones cartoon instead of a dramatic musical. A documentary, The Sweatbox (2002), details the production troubles that The Emperor's New Groove endured during its six years of development. The Emperor's New Groove premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on December 10, 2000, and was released in theaters by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution under the Walt Disney Pictures banner on December 15, 2000. It received generally positive reviews from critics, but underperformed at the box office compared to Disney films released in the 1990s, grossing $169.5 million on a $100-million budget. However, the film found larger success when it was released for home media, and became the best-selling home video release of 2001. In the years since its release, The Emperor's New Groove has garnered a cult following among fans. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the song "My Funny Friend and Me", performed by Sting; that award went to "Things Have Changed" by Bob Dylan from Wonder Boys. A direct-to-video spin-off sequel, Kronk's New Groove, was released on December 13, 2005, and an animated television series, The Emperor's New School, aired on the Disney Channel from 2006 to 2008.

Infobox

Directed by

Mark Dindal

Screenplay by

David Reynolds

Story by

mw- Chris Williams Mark Dindal

Based on

Original storyby Roger AllersMatthew Jacobs

Produced by

Randy Fullmer

Starring

David Spade John Goodman Eartha Kitt Patrick Warburton Wendie Malick

Edited by

Pamela Ziegenhagen-Shefland

Music by

John Debney

Productioncompany

Walt Disney Feature Animation

Distributed by

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution[a]

Release dates

December 10, 2000 (2000-12-10) (El Capitan Theatre) December 15, 2000 (2000-12-15) (United States)

Running time

78 minutes

Country

United States

Language

English

Budget

$100 million

Box office

$169.7 million