Andy Serkis explains why he changed Orwell's iconic 'Animal Farm' ending for new movie

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Serkis approached the adaptation by asking himself what Orwell would write about if he wrote “Animal Farm” today. He didn’t want it to be a story about Stalinist Russia. Instead, he gravitated toward themes of capitalism, wealth and overconsumption. The billionaire antagonist, Pilkington (Glenn Close), drives what closely resembles a Cybertruck.

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Backlash to the trailer included one particular sting: “Orwell is rolling in his grave.” But Serkis maintains the author's estate signed off on the adaptation when he secured the rights. He insists “Orwell would have wanted” controversy.

“He's sort of adored and abhorred by both left and right, and that's the other thing about our film. We're not having a go at any one administration or regime. It's about authoritarianism and our response to that and power corrupting,” Serkis says. “I welcomed it. I loved that debate because that's what it's all about, creating a debate. That's what I do in my job as an actor, storyteller, filmmaker. Any act of creating art for me is about saying to the audience or the viewer, ‘Think about this differently.’ And if you don't agree with me, that's not a problem, but think about it differently."

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Serkis scrubs the story of its violence, at least in any graphic manner. Snowball (Cox), for example, is escorted off the farm rather than chased by hounds and torn to pieces like in the book. Boxer’s (Harrelson) horrific glue factory death is largely implied. It didn’t stop Serkis’ team from giving me a promotional bottle of craft glue with the horse’s face on it, though. I'm not sure how this bit of dark humor will go over with the kiddos.

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“Animal Farm,” classically, is a story without a happy ending. But Serkis’ interpretation gives viewers closure. The film adds an entirely new third act: Lucky has a change of heart and apologizes, the animals take down Napoleon and the evil capitalistic Pilkington. Lucky tells the cautionary tale for a new generation.

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“We live in a world where there seemingly is no hope at the moment. We keep making the same mistakes. There are oppressive regimes globally. There are bosses in companies that maltreat their workers globally. We're living in such a difficult time. All times are difficult for humanity, but we're living in, it seems, certainly a world without truth or the inability to really know what is true and what isn't true.

“So we wanted the next generation, the kids who we hopefully are going to be watching this film, to at least have the ability to question what they should do next time around. History will inevitably repeat itself.”

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