'White Bird': Release Date, Cast, Plot, and Everything We Know About the 'Wonder' Followup (2024)

When Lionsgate released the 2017 film Wonder, based on the novel by R.J. Palacio, very few could predict the success it would go on to become. Produced on a budget of $20 million, the film will go on to gross $306.2 million at the box office amidst acclaim from both audience and critics. Off the back of that much success, it was only logical that Lionsgate would try to continue the Wonder story in some form.

Beyond commercial considerations, the premise for Wonder is the sort of tonic needed in a world where love needs to be emphasized above hate. The 2017 film was a touching tale of 11-year-old August "Auggie" Pullman, a child born with a rare genetic disorder and facial deformity who had to endure bullying and discrimination from his classmates at a private school. The spin-off sequel/prequel White Bird (previously titled White Bird: A Wonder Story), moves the focus to Auggie's bully, Julian, and his experiences with his grandmother who survived as a Jewish girl in France during World War II. She sees the need to recount tales from her past as a means to teach her grandson some vital life lessons.

Editor's Note: This piece was updated on December 28, 2023.

White Bird

Drama

War

History

White Bird follows the journey of Julian, a boy expelled from school for bullying, as he struggles to fit in at a new institution. His transformation begins when his grandmother shares her compelling story of courage during her youth in Nazi-occupied France, where a classmate offered her shelter.

Release Date

October 4, 2024

Director

Marc Forster

Cast

Ariella Glaser , Orlando Schwerdt , Bryce Gheisar , Gillian Anderson , Helen Mirren , Jo Stone-Fewings , Patsy Ferran , Stuart McQuarrie , Olivia Ross , Ishai Golan , Nadine Leon Gobet , John Bubniak , Jim High , Philip Lenkowsky , James Beaumont , Teagan Stark , Priya Ghotane , Yelisey Kazakevich , Jem Matthews , Sam Talacko , Timon McLean , Selma Kaymakci , Lily Huong Mac , Adam Bakule , Anise Napoleao dos Reis , Jordan Cramond , Laura Hudečková

Runtime

121 Minutes

Main Genre

Drama

Does 'White Bird' Have a Release Date?

It's taken a while for White Bird to finally hit the big screen. The film's initial release was marked for September 16, 2022, before being delayed to October 14, 2022. A month before its release, Lionsgate pulled the film off its release schedule. The film was then scheduled to have a limited release on August 18, 2023, followed by a wide release on August 25, 2023. But that release also never came to pass. In December 2023, Lionsgate announced that the film would finally be released on October 4, 2023, over two years after its original release date.

Will 'White Bird' Be Released in Theaters?

Yes, despite the numerous release date changes, White Bird will enjoy an exclusive theatrical release. Currently, the film will be competing against Joker: Folie à Deux, the highly anticipated musical sequel to Todd Phillip's Oscar-winning film Joker.

Is There a Trailer for 'White Bird'?

The first official trailer for White Bird was released by Lionsgate on their YouTube channel on June 23, 2023. The shows the background upon which the film finds expression, scenes from Wonder paint the grim picture of bullying experienced by the young Auggie Pullman. The trailer then moves on to Julian's grandmother as she tries to use her experiences as a tool to school her young grandchild on the dangers of bullying. A flashback chronicles her experiences in Nazi-occupied France during the Second World War when she is a victim of bullying by her peers at school due to her Jewish heritage. She relives how she survived because of the kindness of a friend and his family.

A new trailer for White Bird was released on December 19 by Lionsgate, also unveiling the film's new October 2024 release date.

Who Stars in 'White Bird'?

Helen Mirren plays Julian's grandmother Sara Albans. The Oscar-winning actor is a veteran of many successful period dramas. She has had lead roles in Catherine the Great, The Queen, Antony and Cleopatra, and the television series Elizabeth I. With a career spanning over five decades, she has won numerous awards and is the only performer to have achieved the American and British Triple Crowns, having won one Academy Award, four BAFTA Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and one Tony Award.

Bryce Gheisar reprises his role from the 2017 film as Julian Albans, Auggie’s former bully. Outside the Wonder films, Gheisar appeared in the films A Dog's Purpose and The 15:17 to Paris. He played the role of Herman in the popular Disney Channel sitcom Walk the Prank and starred in two limited series on Nickelodeon, The Astronauts and Are You Afraid of the Dark?: Curse of the Shadows.

Gillian Anderson plays Julian's mother Vivienne. Anderson is most known for her prolific work on popular series such as The X-Files, The Crown, and Sex Education. Her work in film includes The Last King of Scotland, The Pale Blue Eye, and The Spy Who Dumped Me. The rest of the cast includes Ariella Glaser (Radioactive) as the young Sara and Orlando Schwerdt (Children of the Corn) as Julien.

What Is 'White Bird' About?

The story picks up where Wonder stops. Julian has been sent home from Beecher Prep for bullying Auggie about his appearance. In the aftermath of these events, Julian’s grandmother visits and is moved to share a story from her past. It's a tale of compassion and love, and Julian could do with some of that. Grandmère takes her grandson down memory lane as she chronicles her experiences in heat of World War II as a young Jewish girl in Nazi-occupied France. Thanks to the heroic efforts of her classmate and his parents who go to difficult lengths to hide her from the rampaging Nazis, she survives and lives to recount to her grandson the power of love and empathy.

The official synopsis for White Bird from Lionsgate reads:

From the best-selling author of Wonder, the book that sparked a movement to “choose kind,” comes the inspirational next chapter. In White Bird, we follow Julian (Bryce Gheisar), who has struggled to belong ever since he was expelled from his former school for his treatment of Auggie Pullman. To transform his life, Julian’s grandmother (Helen Mirren) finally reveals to Julian her own story of courage — during her youth in Nazi-occupied France, a boy shelters her from mortal danger. They find first love in a stunning, magical world of their own creation, while the boy’s mother (Gillian Anderson) risks everything to keep her safe. From director Marc Forster (Finding Neverland and Christopher Robin), screenwriter Mark Bomback, and based on R.J. Palacio’s book, White Bird: A Wonder Story, like Wonder before it, is an uplifting movie about how one act of kindness can live on forever.

Who Is Making 'White Bird'?

White Bird: A Wonder Story will be directed by Marc Forster who is just coming off of the sleeper-hit A Man Called Otto starring Tom Hanks (which ironically was filmed after White Bird). An accomplished filmmaker, Forster first broke out with the Oscar-winning film Monster's Ball in 2001. Since then, he has directed films such as Finding Neverland, Stranger Than Fiction, The Kite Runner, Quantum of Solace, World War Z, and Christopher Robin.

Mark Bomback penned the script for the film. Bomback previously wrote the screenplays for blockbuster films such as The Wolverine, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and War for the Planet of the Apes, as well as the 2019 drama The Art of Racing in the Rain. Most recently he served as the showrunner on the Apple TV+ miniseries Defending Jacob.

Matthias Koenigswieser and Matt Chessé (A Man Called Otto), frequent collaborators of Forster's, are behind the cinematography and editing respectively. The 15-time Oscar nominee Thomas Newman (Wall-E) composed the film's score.

The film is produced by David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman, who previously produced Wonder, and the book's author R.J. Palacio.