WALL-E Update

First of all: I just took another look at IMDb, and John Ratzenberger's participation in the movie is now listed at "rumored," as is the involvement of Sigourney Weaver and Kathy Najimy. I would think that such things as cast lists would be released by now, since the movie is only about 2 months away from opening, but I guess not. Anyway, I REALLY hope that Ratzenberger will be in the movie... I think its a nice tradition to keep.

Second: I've become aware of something of a controversy (among fans, at least) about the similarity of WALL-E to another famous robot with a personality - Johnny 5 from Short Circuit. I think its probably just coincidence - there are some similarities, but there are also quite a few differences. Take a look:








The "feet" look a lot alike - but they also look a lot like the tires (or whatever they're called) used by backhoes and other heavy construction equipment. Aside from that, WALL-E and Johnny 5 have different bodies (boxy vs thin and rectangular), different eyes (binocular-like vs. camera-lens-like) and at least slightly different arms. Bottom line: I don't think there are enough similarities to accuse anyone of stealing.

UPDATE (again): The "rumored" disclaimers have been removed from names on IMDb's WALL-E page. So that means a DEFINITE role for John Ratzenberg, right? *crosses fingers and hopes*