Ryan Reynolds is on the case in the new Pokémon: Detective Pikachu trailer

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Surprisingly fun trailer, I choose you! Today, Legendary has called a trailer for the first-ever live-action Pokémon adventure, POKÈMON: DETECTIVE PIKACHU, to the cinematic battlefield. The upcoming film stars Ryan Reynolds (DEADPOOL, THE HITMAN’S BODYGUARD) as the voice of Pikachu, the multi-generational franchise’s flagship character.

In the trailer, we find JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM’s Justice Smith and Reynolds' Pikachu teaming up to solve a mystery while exploring a world populated by the adorable (and in some cases, deadly) pocket monsters. Fans of the franchise are bound to squee over many of the sites and sounds featured in this new trailer, as I can guarantee that no one has ever seen Pokémon quite like this before.

Here’s the official synopsis for the live-action adventure:

The story begins when ace detective Harry Goodman goes mysteriously missing, prompting his 21-year-old son Tim to find out what happened. Aiding in the investigation is Harry’s former Pokémon partner, Detective Pikachu: a hilariously wise-cracking, adorable super-sleuth who is a puzzlement even to himself. Finding that they are uniquely equipped to communicate with one another, Tim and Pikachu join forces on a thrilling adventure to unravel the tangled mystery. Chasing clues together through the neon-lit streets of Ryme City—a sprawling, modern metropolis where humans and Pokémon live side by side in a hyper-realistic live-action world—they encounter a diverse cast of Pokémon characters and uncover a shocking plot that could destroy this peaceful co-existence and threaten the whole Pokémon universe.

Directed by Rob Letterman (GOOSEBUMPS, MONSTERS VS. ALIENS), who co-wrote the screenplay with Nicole Perlman (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY), POKÈMON: DETECTIVE PIKACHU looks to be an all-ages adventure that’s bound to warm the hearts of Pokémon fans the world over.

As someone who's been a fan of the Pokémon franchise for over 20 years, I have to say that this movie looks awesome! Now, while I'm sure that this will be a family-friendly affair through-and-through, I wouldn't be surprised if Reynolds' Pikachu cracks a few joke for the adults in the audience as well. Furthermore, the world that they've created in Ryme City looks alive and positively teeming with both humans and pocket monsters living among one another. I'm going to nerd out hard to this one, I just know it. I mean, imagine the Easter Egg count for a movie like this – it's going to be the very best. 

POKÈMON: DETECTIVE PIKACHU is set for release on Friday, May 10, 2019.

Source: Legendary

About the Author

Born and raised in New York, then immigrated to Canada, Steve Seigh has been a JoBlo.com editor, columnist, and critic since 2012. He started with Ink & Pixel, a column celebrating the magic and evolution of animation, before launching the companion YouTube series Animation Movies Revisited. He's also the host of the Talking Comics Podcast, a personality-driven audio show focusing on comic books, film, music, and more. You'll rarely catch him without headphones on his head and pancakes on his breath.