LOS ANGELES, Oct 15 — Universal Pictures has unveiled the first trailer for its upcoming Dr Dolittle reboot, Dolittle. The new feature stars Robert Downey Jr in the titular role.

The film represents Robert Downey Jr’s first big project since his announcement that he would be retiring from playing Iron Man in the Marvel Universe films following a decade of loyal services. Dolittle will be directed by Stephen Gaghan, known for screenwriting Steven Soderbergh’s Traffic, and is a new adaptation of the famous Hugh Lofting-written children’s novels, published between 1920 and 1950.

The story, set in Victorian England, happens seven years after John Dolittle, who can famously "talk to the animals”, has lost his wife. Inconsolable, the eccentric doctor has become a shut-in, sharing his house with a number of animals as company. When the young Queen Victoria falls ill, he sets out to a mystical island to find a remedy for her ills.

Casting-wise, Tom Holland, Emma Thompson, Ralph Fiennes, Kumail Nanjiani, Octavia Spencer, John Cena, Rami Malek, Craig Robinson, Marion Cotillard, Frances de la Tour and Carmen Ejogo will be voicing the animals, while Antonio Banderas, Jim Broadbent and Michael Sheen will hold live-action roles.

The film is set for release January 17, 2020 in the US. — AFP-Relaxnews