The Croods is a 2013 American 3D computer-animated adventure comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It features the voices of Nicolas Cage, Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone, Catherine Keener, Clark Duke, and Cloris Leachman. The film is set in a prehistoric era know as The Croodaceous, A period which contains fantastical creatures, when a man's position as a "Leader of the Hunt" is threatened by the arrival of a prehistoric genius who comes up with revolutionary new inventions, like fire, as they trek through a dangerous but exotic land in search of a new home.
The Croods was written and directed by Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders, and produced by Kristine Belson and Jane Hartwell. It was released in theaters on March 22, 2013. As part of the distribution deal, this became the first film from DreamWorks Animation to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, since the end of their distribution deal with Paramount Pictures in 2012 with Rise of the Guardians.
The film starts with Eep (Emma Stone), a girl in a family of Neanderthal Cavemen (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) living in pre-historic times, talking about how her family is one of the few to survive nearby, mainly due to the strict rules of her overprotective father, Grug (Nicolas Cage). When in their cave home, Grug tells a story to the rest of the family which includes his wife Ugga (Catherine Keener), his daughter Sandy (Randy Thom), his son Thunk (Clark Duke), and his mother-in-law (Cloris Leachman) with a character that mirrors Eep's curious nature. He uses this story to warn the family that exploration and 'new things' pose a threat to their survival. This irritates the bored and adventurous Eep, and when the family falls asleep after dark, she ignores her father's advice and leaves the cave when she sees a light moving outside the cave.
