ⓘ Details

Movie TitleBee Movie

Release DateNovember 2, 2007

TaglineBorn to bee wild.

Runtime91 minutes

DirectorSimon J. Smith & Steve Hickner

Screenplay Written ByJerry Seinfeld, Spike Feresten, Barry Marder & Andy Robin

Based OnOriginal story and characters created for the film

Is It a Remake?No. Bee Movie is an original DreamWorks Animation feature.

BudgetApproximately $150 million

Box OfficeApprox. $126.6 million domestic / Approx. $293.5 million worldwide

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👥 Main Cast

Jerry SeinfeldBarry B. Benson

Renée ZellwegerVanessa Bloome

Matthew BroderickAdam Flayman

Patrick WarburtonKen

John GoodmanLayton T. Montgomery

Chris RockMooseblood

Kathy BatesJanet Benson

Barry LevinsonMartin Benson

Ray LiottaRay Liotta

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🏆 Awards

⭐ Golden Globe Nominee — Best Motion Picture, Animated

⭐ Critics Choice Awards Nominee — Best Animated Feature

⭐ Producers Guild of America Nominee — Best Animated Motion Picture

⭐ Annie Awards Nominee — Best Animated Feature

⭐ Annie Awards Nominee — Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production, Patrick Warburton

⭐ Annie Awards Nominee — Music in an Animated Feature Production, Rupert Gregson-Williams

⭐ Annie Awards Nominee — Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production, Nassos Vakalis

⭐ Kids’ Choice Awards Nominee — Favorite Animated Movie

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📖 Short Plot Summary

Barry B. Benson, a freshly graduated bee, is horrified to learn that humans harvest and sell honey. After befriending New York florist Vanessa Bloome, Barry sues humanity for stealing from bees — but his legal victory creates a massive ecological mess when bees stop working and the world’s flowers begin to die.

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❝ Key Quotes

“Ya like jazz?” — Barry B. Benson

“According to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly.” — Narrator

“You’re flying outside the hive. You’re talking to humans. You’re making out with humans!” — Adam Flayman

“This is stealing! A lot of stealing!” — Barry B. Benson

“Thinking bee!” — Barry B. Benson

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💡 Trivia

Director

Bee Movie was directed by Simon J. Smith and Steve Hickner.
Smith had previously worked in DreamWorks Animation’s story and visual-effects pipeline before co-directing the film.
Hickner had animation directing experience before Bee Movie, including work on The Prince of Egypt.
The film was a major DreamWorks Animation theatrical release distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Cast / Casting

Jerry Seinfeld voiced Barry B. Benson and also co-wrote and produced the film.
Renée Zellweger voiced Vanessa Bloome, the human florist who befriends Barry.
Matthew Broderick voiced Barry’s best friend, Adam Flayman.
The voice cast includes several celebrity cameos and supporting parts, including Chris Rock, Ray Liotta, Sting, Larry King, and Oprah Winfrey.

Soundtrack / Score

The score was composed by Rupert Gregson-Williams.
The soundtrack album Bee Movie: Music from the Motion Picture was released in 2007.
The film uses both original score and licensed songs, including “Sugar Sugar” by The Archies.
Gregson-Williams received an Annie Award nomination for Music in an Animated Feature Production.

Location

The story moves between Barry’s hive world and New York City.
Vanessa Bloome works as a florist in New York, which becomes Barry’s main connection to the human world.
The courtroom scenes turn the movie into a bizarre legal comedy about honey ownership.
Because the film is animated, its locations are designed environments rather than live-action filming locations.

Behind-The-Scenes

Jerry Seinfeld co-wrote the screenplay with Spike Feresten, Barry Marder, and Andy Robin.
Seinfeld also produced the film with Christina Steinberg.
The movie reportedly had a production budget of approximately $150 million.
Bee Movie opened in the United States on November 2, 2007, the same weekend as American Gangster.

Nostalgia

The movie became a major internet meme years after its theatrical release, especially because of its strange premise and endlessly quotable dialogue.
“Ya like jazz?” became one of the movie’s most repeated online jokes.
The film’s combination of courtroom drama, bee labor politics, florist romance, and celebrity cameos helped give it a second life online.
For many viewers, Bee Movie is remembered less as a standard animated family film and more as one of the strangest mainstream animated comedies of the 2000s.

Easter Eggs

Ray Liotta voices a fictionalized version of himself in scenes involving “Ray Liotta Private Select” honey.
Sting appears as himself during the courtroom sequence, letting the movie make a very literal “Sting” joke.
Larry King appears as “Bee Larry King,” a bee-world version of his real-life media persona.
The movie’s opening joke about bee flight plays off a popular myth about bees and aviation.

Misc.

Bee Movie was released domestically on November 2, 2007.
The film is rated PG and runs 91 minutes.
Box Office Mojo lists the film’s domestic total at approximately $126.6 million and worldwide total at approximately $293.5 million.
Your 3 Guys and a Flick ratings page lists the episode as Episode 259, with an overall rating of 3.00.

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