Quvenzhané Wallis
Annie Bennett
Overview
Annie is a young, happy foster kid who's also tough enough to make her way on the streets of New York in 2014. Originally left by her parents as a baby with the promise that they'd be back for her someday, it's been a hard knock life ever since with her mean foster mom Miss Hannigan. But everything's about to change when the hard-nosed tycoon and New York mayoral candidate Will Stacks—advised by his brilliant VP and his shrewd and scheming campaign advisor—makes a thinly-veiled campaign move and takes her in. Stacks believes he's her guardian angel, but Annie's self-assured nature and bright, sun-will-come-out-tomorrow outlook on life just might mean it's the other way around.
Cast
12 people
Reviews
5 min readThe Hard Knock Life of a Remake
I’ll admit it: I went into Annie (2014) with low expectations. Not because of Quvenzhané Wallis—her performance in Beasts of the Southern Wild had already proven she could carry a film with nothing but a stubborn glare and a hurricane at her back—but because remakes of beloved musicals often feel like corporate autopsies, dissecting the original’s charm to see what still twitches. What I didn’t expect was how much this version would frustrate me precisely because it gets so much right, only to stumble over the same glossy, auto-tuned pitfalls that make modern family films feel like extended commercials for optimism.
Wallis is the reason to watch. She’s eleven years old here, but she moves through the world like someone who’s already learned that hope is a currency best spent carefully. When she belts out “Tomorrow” in the middle of a rainstorm, her voice isn’t just strong—it’s lived in.
There’s a rasp to it, a weariness that shouldn’t exist in a child’s voice but does, because Annie’s life has been one long lesson in disappointment. Wallis doesn’t play Annie as plucky; she plays her as someone who’s decided to be happy anyway, and that small but crucial difference makes the character feel real in a way most child protagonists don’t. When she curls into Jamie Foxx’s lap during a thunderstorm, it’s not just a cute moment—it’s a quiet acknowledgment that even the toughest kids need someone to hold them sometimes.
Foxx, for his part, is a revelation. I’ve never been a huge fan of his comedic schtick, but here he dials it back just enough to let Will Stacks feel like a real person—a man who’s spent so long building walls that he’s forgotten how to climb over them. His singing voice is warm and surprisingly soulful, especially in the deleted subway scene (which, by all accounts, should’ve stayed in the film).
There’s a moment where he and Annie slow-dance in his penthouse, and the camera lingers on his face as he realizes, maybe for the first time, that he’s not saving her. She’s saving him. It’s the kind of scene that could’ve been mawkish in lesser hands, but Foxx and Wallis sell it with a restraint that feels almost radical in a movie this shiny.
Audience Opinions
Audience 5.7/10
"A sunny, sentimental remake lifted by Quvenzhané Wallis and Jamie Foxx but dragged down by auto-tuned songs, clumsy staging, and weaker supporting work."
The central relationship between Annie and Will Stacks, along with Wallis's charisma and Foxx's unexpected vocal strength, gives the story warmth and some genuinely touching moments. latestnetflix.com's read is that at the same time, the modern update leans heavily on glossy pop production, obvious auto-tune, and awkward choreography, leaving the musical numbers and supporting characters feeling thin or grating compared with earlier versions.
What viewers praise
- Engaging young lead Quvenzhané Wallis is frequently singled out as the standout, bringing energy, charm, and some powerful emotional scenes to Annie.
- Strong Jamie Foxx vocals Jamie Foxx's singing voice earns consistent praise and his musical numbers are often cited as the most enjoyable performances.
- Warm, feel-good tone The film delivers a positive, hopeful message and works well as cozy, family-friendly viewing for kids and nostalgic rewatchers.
- Emotional moments that land Several scenes late in the film, especially between Annie and Stacks, are described as genuinely moving and occasionally tear-inducing.
Common complaints
- Heavy auto-tune Extensive pitch correction on many songs makes the soundtrack feel artificial and even grating to those sensitive to processed vocals.
- Awkward modernization The attempt to update the story with contemporary references, pop arrangements, and glossy visuals often feels gimmicky rather than organic.
- Uneven supporting cast The other foster kids are seen as over-eager and underwritten, while Rose Byrne's character has little to do and leaves little impression.
- Divisive Miss Hannigan Cameron Diaz's broad, campy take on Miss Hannigan and her later softening are criticized as misjudged and inferior to earlier portrayals.
- Weaker song revisions New songs and reworked classics are frequently called forgettable or inferior, with only a few numbers like the core anthems still standing out.
Recommended for
Family musical night picks Quvenzhané Wallis admirers Jamie Foxx musical roles Lighthearted comfort rewatches Modernized musical adaptations
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsSony leaked Annie three weeks before Christmas, then asked people to buy tickets.
On November 27, 2014, the Guardians of Peace dump from the Sony hack put Will Gluck's musical on the internet. Wikipedia says about 206,000 unique IPs grabbed it in three days, more than 316,000 by December 9. BoxOffice.com's chief analyst shrugged that pirates were not the target audience. The studio still sent a $65 million to $78 million Harlem update into theaters on December 19 against The Hobbit and Night at the Museum. It made $85.9 million at home and $136.9 million worldwide. CinemaScore audiences gave it an A minus. Rotten Tomatoes sat at 28 percent. The Razzies handed it Worst Remake. latestnetflix.com's take is that Cameron Diaz was nominated for Worst Supporting Actress in the same round.
That split was baked in before the leak. Sony announced the film in January 2011 with Jay-Z and Will Smith producing and Willow Smith as Annie. Ryan Murphy was the early director rumor. He passed. Emma Thompson drafted. Aline Brosh McKenna rewrote. Will Gluck signed in January 2013 after Easy A, and Willow had aged out. Quvenzhane Wallis, already an Oscar nominee for Beasts of the Southern Wild, took the part that February. Justin Timberlake was rumored for Daddy Warbucks. Jamie Foxx got the job, renamed Will Stacks, a germ-anxious cellphone billionaire running for mayor of New York. Sandra Bullock declined Miss Hannigan. Cameron Diaz said yes. Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale, then a couple off camera, came in as Grace and the campaign shark Guy Danlily. Principal photography started September 2013, including Four World Trade Center. TMDB still lists it as movie/196867, PG, 1 hour 58 minutes, the 2014 film, not the 1982 one.
Mark Kermode, in The Guardian, clocked the pre-release noise. Some viewers wanted a fair-skinned ginger moppet. The film opens by brushing that student aside. He also clocked the movie's nerves about being a musical, quoting the on-screen tic "Are you singing to me? Is this actually happening?" He called Diaz a "shrieky cacophony of awfulness" and Wallis "far and away the best thing about the movie." Wallis still got a Golden Globe nomination. Sia's new song "Opportunity" got the other. Sia and Greg Kurstin rearranged the Strouse and Charnin catalogue into pop percussion and wrote "Who Am I" and "MoonQuake Lake" on top. Entertainment Weekly called the auto-tune a disaster. Rihanna, Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, and Michael J. Fox all wander through the fake movie inside the movie.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nasLuiP-1E0
ComingSoon reported in April 2026 that Netflix would drop the title on May 1. What's on Netflix had it on the leaving list. The Sony trailer is still up if you want the campaign smile before the hard knock.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
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